CEBU, Philippines — Residential power consumers of the Visayan Electric will be paying another round of higher electricity rate for the November-December billing month.
Visayan Electric said that a 22-centavo per kilowatt hour increase in electricity rates will be implemented in that period due to high prices of fuel and the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).
Visayan Electric president and chief operating officer Engr. Raul Lucero explained that the November-December billing cycle for residential customers will still reflect the high WESM prices that were driven by the equally high prices of fuel in the world market.
“Our electricity rates are still very much affected by the global price of fuel, especially now that worldwide supply is low and economies are starting to reopen. WESM prices are affected by this, as well,” Lucero said in a statement.
Lucero added that customers should be mindful of their electricity use to avoid “bill shock,” more so that the Christmas season is here and people tend to consume more electricity for their lights and other appliances.
Earlier, the Visayan Electric also increased its electricity rate by 13 centavos per kilowatt hour during the billing month of October-November.
The Visayan Electric noted that for this billing cycle, the increase was due to high prices of fuel in the world market, as well as an increase in the transmission charges by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).
Lucero had said that the Visayan Electric’s efforts to lower their generation rates by terminating some of their Power Supply Agreements (PSAs) were overtaken by the volatile prices of fuel in the world market.
Nevertheless, the Visayan Electric announced that payment arrangements for customers who cannot pay their electricity bills in full are still being offered and may be availed of at any of their service centers.
The Visayan Electric is the country’s second largest electric utility. It serves the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay, and Naga, and four municipalities of Metro Cebu, namely Liloan, Consolacion, Minglanilla, and San Fernando. — JMD (FREEMAN)