Meralco says consumers to save P11.8B from 600-MW power supply deals --[Reported by Umva mag]

MANILA Electric Co. (Meralco) is seeking approval from the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) for its 600-megawatt (MW) power supply agreements (PSAs), which are projected to result in consumer savings totaling P11.76 billion.

Meralco has filed separate joint applications with San Miguel Global Power Holdings Corp.’s Masinloc Power Co. Ltd. (MPCL) and Aboitiz Power Corp.’s GNPower Dinginin Ltd. Co. (GNPD).

The power distributor secured the lowest bids from MPCL and GNPD, which offered P5.6015 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for 500-MW capacity and P5.7392 per kWh for 100 MW, respectively.

The Bids and Awards Committee for PSA issued notices of award to MPCL and GNPD. Thereafter, Meralco signed PSAs with the two generation companies with planned effectivity on Aug. 26, 2025.

In Meralco’s joint filing with MPCL, they said that the delivered rate would be P5.0107 per kWh, inclusive of line rental and value-added tax (VAT), citing a rate impact analysis.

This is lower by about P2.2719 per kWh than the effective cost of P7.2825 per kWh if the equivalent capacity under the Meralco-MPCL PSA is sourced from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM), the trading floor of electricity.

“In fact, by sourcing the capacity through the Meralco-MPCL PSA, Meralco’s average blended generation rate will be reduced by about P0.2508 per kWh… resulting in savings to consumers of about P9.951 billion,” the application read.

MPCL owns and operates Units 3 and 4 of the Masinloc Coal-Fired Thermal Power Plant in Brgy. Bani, Masinloc, Zambales, and capable of supplying 619.50 MW. The power plant units are undergoing construction.

Meanwhile, in Meralco’s application with GNPD, the firms said that consumers could save about P1.805 billion by sourcing the 100-MW supply requirement through the PSA instead of the spot market.

They said that the delivered rate of P5.2217 per kWh (line rental inclusive and VAT inclusive) is lower by about P2.0608 per kWh compared to the effective cost of P7.2825 per kWh if the same capacity is sourced from the WESM.

GNPD owns and operates a 1,336 MW coal-fired power plant in Brgy. Alasasin, Mariveles, Bataan.

Citing its Distribution Development Plan and Power Supply Procurement Plan approved by the Department of Energy, Meralco is seeing a baseload capacity deficit in its portfolio of 600 MW based on its power situation outlook for the third quarter of 2025.

“If this deficiency is not addressed through the grant of provisional authority or interim relief, Meralco’s customers stand to be exposed to the volatile prices of the WESM equivalent to the considerable volume of the subject Meralco-MPCL PSA,” according to one of the applications.

Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT Inc.

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