Spot power prices fell in February 2026

Spot power prices dipped in February, driven by a stronger electricity buffer built during the period, according to the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP).

The Energy Regulatory Commission, however, warned last Friday that the ongoing Middle East war could drive Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) prices higher in the coming months.

Based on the latest data covering Jan. 26 to Feb. 25, IEMOP reported that systemwide power rates dipped by 1.8 percent to P3.50 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), down from the previous month’s P3.56 per kWh.

IEMOP operates WESM, where power is traded between producers and distributors to boost their supply.

The overall demand last month inched up by 3.1 percent to 12,874 megawatts (MW) from 12,492 MW. But supply improved by 4.4 percent to 19,992 MW against the previous 19,152 MW.

However, among the three grids, only Luzon recorded a drop in WESM prices on the back of better supply margins.

It decreased by 17.2 percent to P2.69 per kWh from P3.25 per kWh. Luzon’s demand jumped 5.2 percent to 9,016 MW while its supply also increased to 14,286 MW.

WESM prices in the Visayas, meanwhile, surged 26.6 percent to P5.37 per kWh as supply decreased by 4.4 percent to 2,256 MW.

Mindanao also saw costlier WESM rates, increasing by 23.2 percent to P5.25 per kWh. Its supply also went down by 3.2 percent to 3,449 MW.

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“Several generating units across all grids experience outages throughout the month,” IEMOP said.

“Under tighter supply conditions, oil‑based and other higher‑marginal‑cost plants were dispatched more frequently,” it added.

In the Visayas, forced outages from various technologies reached 1,640.1 MW. Mindanao also witnessed plant disruptions from coal, run-of-the-river hydro and hydro technologies totaling 495.8 MW for forced outages and 105 MW for planned outages.

Coal continued to dominate the electricity generation mix in February, contributing 54.7 percent. Renewable energy sources, on the other hand, provided 27 percent.