Customers of Manila Electric Company (Meralco) can expect lower electricity bills for the month of October, on the back of lower feed-in-tariff allowance and generation charges during the period.

In a statement, Meralco said the overall electricity rate dropped by Php 0.0737 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) to Php 9.8628 in October from P9.9365 per kWh in September due to the reduction in the feed-in-tariff allowance (FIT-All) amounting 6.19 centavos/kWh.

The latest adjustments will translate to an estimated reduction of Php 15 in the total electricity bill of customers consuming 200 kWh.

Generation charges for the month were also reduced by 2.01 centavos/kWh to Php 6.9192/kWh from Php 6.939/kWh in the past month, owing to lower costs from the company’s supply contracts.

Meralco said charges from independent power producers (IPPs) and power supply agreements (PSAs) also decreased during the month, with both cumulatively accounting for 96% of the firm’s energy requirement for the period.

“The reduced use of more expensive alternative fuel by the First Gas-Sta. Rita and San Lorenzo plants and increased plant utilization of IPPs and PSAs more than offset the impact of the steep depreciation of the peso in September,” Meralco said, noting that dollar-denominated costs made up 98% of IPP and 38% of PSA charges.

The peso closed at P58.625 per dollar on Sept. 30, weakening by P2.48 or 4.4% from its Aug. 31 close of P56.145.