DAVAO Light’s overall residential rate decreased by P0.18 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for May, the power distribution utility announced on Monday.
This brings the new rate to P10.35 kWh, reflecting a decrease of P0.18/kWh from last month’s rate of P10.53/kWh. Davao Light said the adjusted rate applies to electricity bills received from May 12 to June 10.
“The lower rate is attributed to a reduction in transmission rate from the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP),” it said in a press statement.
The power transmission service provider NGCP announced the reduction on May 13 was driven by lower transmission wheeling charges and reduced ancillary services rates.
NGCP’s transmission wheeling rate covers the cost of delivering electricity through the transmission network, while ancillary rates refer to support services tapped by NGCP from the reserve market to help stabilize the power grid.
Davao Light said the reduction of residential rate is also due to the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) order to temporarily suspend the P0.0371/kWh Green Energy Auction Allowance (GEA-All) collection for the May and June 2026 billing periods.
ERC announced that the move is to help ease the financial burden of consumers amid rising inflation from global conflict.
The GEA-All is a mechanism used to support payments to eligible renewable energy developers that participate in the auction.
Davao Light reminded customers that rates change monthly since market prices remain volatile.
The power distribution utility encourages customers to continue practicing energy efficiency to manage electricity costs and prevent bill shock.
Davao Light recommended checking the estimated daily or monthly energy usage for each appliance by determining the appliance wattage, the average number of hours the household uses, the number of days the household uses the appliance in a month, and checking the rates.
To calculate the Kilowatt-Hours (kWh), the formula is Wattage / 1000 x Hours Used x Days = Total kWh. To estimate the cost, the total kWh should be multiplied by the rate.
