The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) is once again urging for greater transparency in electricity billing. The company is calling for the unbundling of transmission charges to help consumers clearly distinguish the different costs that make up their monthly power expenses.
Breaking Down the Transmission Charge
NGCP explained that the transmission charge on an electricity bill is not a single fee. It is composed of several key components. The primary ones are the transmission wheeling charge, which covers the cost of delivering electricity through the national grid, and the Ancillary Service (AS) charges.
The transmission wheeling rate can change monthly, reflecting the operational costs of the grid. For the November 2025 billing period, the equivalent average transmission rate decreased to P1.3547 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) from P1.5105/kWh in October.
Pass-Through Costs: What NGCP Does Not Earn From
A significant part of the transmission charge in recent years has been driven by Ancillary Service costs. NGCP emphasized that these are pass-through costs that do not accrue to the company. The grid operator is required by regulators to fully collect these fees and remit them directly to the AS providers.
These providers are power generators that offer reserve capacity to stabilize the grid during sudden supply-demand imbalances. "Over the past year, AS rates formed the bulk of transmission charges following the shift to all-firm AS contracts and the commercial operations of the Ancillary Services Reserve Market," NGCP stated.
Another component is the Feed-in Tariff Allowance (FIT-ALL). NGCP clarified that this charge, which supports renewable energy developers, is not billed to distribution utilities like Meralco or electric cooperatives like Veco. It is applied directly to consumers who are connected to the transmission grid.
The Push for Clearer Billing
NGCP's core argument is that these pass-through costs should be visibly separated from its own service charge. "Together with FIT-ALL, these are pass-through costs which NGCP does not earn from," the company said. "The company is obligated to collect and remit these charges in full to AS providers and to TransCo for the Fit-ALL. It is only proper that these be clearly separated from transmission wheeling rates, which represent NGCP’s actual charge for power delivery services."
This move towards unbundling aims to provide Filipino electricity users with a better understanding of where their money goes, distinguishing between grid operation fees and mandated payments to other market participants.
