Consumers to pay extra for renewable energy
Consumers will see a new 3.7-centavo per kilowatt-hour (kWh) charge on their electricity bills starting January 2026 after the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) approved the collection by the National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) of the Green Energy Auction Allowance (GEA-All).
In a statement on Friday, the ERC said GEA-All, reflected as a separate line item, would fund the payment differential for renewable energy plants awarded under the government’s Green Energy Auction Program.
All on-grid customers will shoulder the charge, which distribution utilities, retail electricity suppliers and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) must collect and fully remit no later than the 15th of the month following each billing cycle.
The ERC also ordered all industry players, including distribution utilities and retail electricity suppliers, to make available all records for an immediate audit of the GEA-All.
The directive likewise covers the NGCP and the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines.
Alongside the new charge, the ERC likewise approved the transmission agency’s application for the 2026 Feed-in Tariff Allowance (FIT-All), setting the rate at P0.2011 per kWh—a P0.0062 per kWh reduction from the current level.
“So, the ones collecting this are the [distribution utilities] from their captive customers, the NGCP from their directly connected customers and the electricity suppliers from the contestable customers—so all collections are remitted to TransCo, the administrator of the fund. And TransCo pays the eligible GEA developers for their electricity generation,” ERC director for market operations Sharon Montaner said.
The FIT-All, also collected from consumers and remitted to the FIT-All Fund, covers payments to eligible renewable energy plants based on approved FIT rates.
ERC chair Francis Saturnino Juan said this was the first time that the ERC has been able to set the FIT-All rate before the year of implementation, calling it a sign of the regulator’s push for timelier action and a more predictable regulatory environment.
Both the new GEA-All charge and the adjusted FIT-All rate will take effect in the January 2026 billing cycle.
