Good news for consumers: government investments in the energy sector are expected to lower electricity costs in the Philippines.
Maharlika Investment Corp. (MIC) President and CEO Rafael Consing and Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Raphael Lotilla shared this during a recent joint press briefing in Malacañang.
They explained how investments, primarily through the MIC, will improve the country’s transmission infrastructure, leading to reduced electricity bills.
The MIC recently acquired a 20% stake in the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).
Consing said the MIC plans to support the NGCP by launching energy development projects. He added that expanding the NGCP’s transmission grid will allow more power suppliers to enter the market, potentially lowering electricity prices.
Lotilla emphasized that addressing transmission constraints is key to reducing rates.
“After a transmission project is finished, it can actually contribute to lowering prices because it addresses the constraints, the transmission constraints that drive prices up,” he said.
“As we rollout more of these projects, then mas lalong walang balakid sa pag-supply ng kuryente.”
He cited the recently completed Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project as an example.
The project, finished in 2024, reduced wholesale electricity spot market prices.
He noted specific decreases in spot market prices, reporting a price drop of P1.99 per kilowatt-hour in Luzon, P1.77 in the Visayas, and P1.30 in Mindanao.IMT
