MANILA -- A consumer group hit Meralco's move to spread out the refund for P19 billion that the power distributor over-collected from July 2022 to December 2024.

Meralco says looking to refund P19 billion to customers

Meralco said its customers will get P0.11/kwh refund for 3 years, while residential customers will get P0.19/kwh refunded over the same period. The National Association of Electricity Consumers for Reform (NASECORE) however, said Meralco should give back the amount to consumers in one big-time refund.

Meralco's P19 billion refund inadequate: ex-ERC official

Speaking at the sidelines of a protest against Meralco, NASECORE President Pete Ilagan said Meralco is capable of refunding the entire amount in one go.

Senator Risa Hontiveros also said that while she welcomes Meralco's refund, found it small.

"Katiting lang iyan kumpara sa tinatayang P100 billion na sobrang kinolekta at dapat ibalik ng Meralco sa taumbayan,” Hontiveros said.

The lawmaker noted that Meralco’s accountabilities to its consumers from 2011 to 2022 have already reached around P100 billion, citing estimates by power industry experts. Hontiveros said the refund is "an inadequate and temporary relief for consumers, who are being overcharged again and again for their power needs."

Ilagan said the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has failed in protecting the public by allowing Meralco to stagger the refund over three years.

Hontiveros also said the power distributor has “miserably failed” in implementing performance-based regulation--the internationally accepted rate-setting methodology--with regards to resetting Meralco’s rates.  The senator said this has allowed the electric utility to use. This, Hontiveros said, has allowed the utility giant to use “grossly unreasonable interim rates for nearly ten years.”

 “Meralco consumers have not had the benefit of reasonable and just electricity rates since 2011," she noted.

“Dapat nang matigil itong hindi patas at mapang-abusong kalakaran ng Meralco. The latest refund should only be the start of a long process of returning every centavo unjustly taken by Meralco for years, while ERC slept on the job,” she added.

Meralco spokesperson Joe Zaldarriaga, however, urged Ilagan to read the ERC's decision. He noted that one can get the refund amount by multiplying the kilowatt-hour consumption with P0.20 for residential consumers.

On the issue of interest earned by the over-recoveries, Zaldarriaga said the company will abide by the decision of the regulator.