TRANSMISSION RATES for the March billing period, reflected in the April electricity bill, increased by 11.51% due to higher ancillary services (AS) charges, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) said.
AS charges rose by 16.05% to P0.8094 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in March, up from P0.6975 per kWh in February, NGCP said in a statement on Tuesday.
The company said the latest charges include the third tranche of the settlement for the remaining 70% of AS costs from the reserve market for the March billing period, the recovery of which was deferred by the Energy Regulatory Commission.
AS charges reflect the cost of power sourced from the reserve market and providers holding bilateral contracts with NGCP, who step in when supply from long-term providers is insufficient.
Meanwhile, transmission wheeling rates, or the charges for NGCP’s primary service of delivering power, slightly increased by 4.81% to P0.5505 per kWh, up from P0.5252 per kWh.
“For the April 2025 bills of end consumers, NGCP charges only 55 centavos per kWh for the delivery of its services. The bulk of transmission charges is for AS, which is remitted directly to AS providers,” the company said.
Transmission charges reflect the cost of delivering electricity from power generators to the distribution system. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
