Protesters troop to the Meralco branch in Kamuning, Quezon City on July 1, 2024, to criticize the firm’s move to source power from fossil fuel plants. Jekki Pascual, ABS-CBN News 

MANILA - A consumer group criticized Meralco on Tuesday saying the company's move to tap fossil-fuel power plants would lead to higher prices.

Meralco however, disputed the claim saying its power bidding was transparent. 

The Power for People Coalition (P4P) trooped to the Meralco branch in Kamuning, Quezon City to protest against the firm’s contracts to source power from fossil fuel plants saying it leads to higher electricity bills. The group said Meralco should instead source from renewable energy plants.

Partido Lakas ng Masa President Leody de Guzman, who led the protest, said the country’s largest power distributor should not get power supply from sources that affect climate change. He added that the new power supply contacts are also expected to raise electricity prices in the country.

“Pagkukunan ng panggatong ay fossil fuel, liquified natural gas, at saka coal- mga source ng kuryente na yan ay proven na napakamahal kasi imported,” said de Guzman.

(They will use fossil fuel, liquified natural gas, and coal— sources of power that are proven to be expensive because it is imported.)

De Guzman was referring to Meralco’s power contracts with fossil fuel plants of Aboitiz Power and San Miguel Corporation which reportedly cover 3 gigawatts of power for 15 years. The group filed a petition before the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) last July 1, 2024. The petition seeks to veto the said contracts.

“Matatali na naman ang ating mamayanan sa napakataas na presyo ng kuryente. Maapektuhan hindi lamang kami manggagawa kundi pati mga maliliit na negosyante mahihirapan,” he added.

(The people will be tied to higher electricity rates. This will not only affect us workers, but also small businesses too.)

"May renewable energy naman na napakamura, halos kalahati ang presyo na mawawala doon sa kasakuluyang presyo ngayon. Mag create pa ng trabaho, malinis pa," De Guzman added.

(There are renewable energy providers that can cut costs by half, which will create jobs and are much cleaner.)

Meralco however rejected what it calls are baseless claims made by P4P. The company said that they are committed to sourcing the least cost available through a competitive selection process (CSP) which is transparent and follows the standards set by the government.

“The CSPs involve an open and competitive process with the ultimate goal to secure the lowest bid from qualified generation companies, with no preferential treatment,” said Meralco Vice President and Head of Corporate Communications Joe Zaldarriaga.

Zaldarriaga added that all their CSPs comply with the policies of the Department of Energy and the ERC. He assured the public that all power supply contracts undergo a strict review and approval from ERC.