DAVAO Light’s overall residential electricity rate for July increased by Php0.78 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), the power distribution utility announced on Saturday, July 18.
This brings the new rate for June to P13.09/kWh, compared to last month’s rate of P12.30/kWh, but is P3 higher than May’s billing of P10.35/kWh.
Davao Light said the increased rate applies to electricity bills received from July 11 to August 10, 2026.
The electric provider attributed the increase to higher generation charges, particularly the higher cost of electricity purchased from the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM).
WESM is one of Davao Light’s supply sources, while 50% is hydropower from NPC Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management, and around 20-30% is coal, which is from Therma South.
“Higher market prices were mainly due to the outage of several major power plants across the country,” Davao Light added.
Additionally, generating facilities were affected by the magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck Southern Mindanao on June 8, 2026.
Other generating facilities, on the other hand, are undergoing scheduled maintenance or have experienced forced outages.
“Together, these events reduced the available electricity supply while demand remained relatively high, resulting in tighter supply conditions and higher market prices,” it said.
Fermin Edillon, Davao Light Reputation Enhancement Department head, said in a June report that high electricity bills are expected beginning the month of June due to the power supply deficits experienced nationwide.
He added that the condition may continue to the next billing months unless there is an easing in the power generation conditions.
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 it, 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.
Meanwhile, Davao Light reiterated that the temporary suspension of the Green Energy Auction Allowance (GEA-ALL) collection has been officially extended until August 2026.
What this means for consumers is to save ₱0.0371 per kWh on the July and August 2026 billing cycles, and the automatic deduction applies to all Davao Light customers.
This advisory is in compliance with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) Order dated July 06 under ERC Case No. 2025-127 RC.
