MANILA -- Electricity bills may go up this month, Meralco said, as part of the overall charge for the June billing has gone up putting pressure on the overall rate to go up.

But Meralco spokesman Joe Zaldarriaga clarified that while the transmission charge will likely be up due to higher electricity prices at the reserve market, the company has yet to get the final figures for generation, which includes prices in the spot market and bilateral contracts.

The generation charge has the biggest part in determining the overall charge for each month. Zaldarriaga said that by the end of the week, Meralco will be able to get a clearer picture of how much higher electric bills will be in June.

In May, the overall rate was down by almost P1/kWh because of lower generation charges as prices in the spot market dipped.

Meralco is also expecting electricity consumption to drop with the arrival of the rainy season as lower temperatures push down power demand.