Benise Balaoing

High voltage towers that support transmission lines for electrical power distribution in the Luzon grid is seen from a residential area in Baesa, Quezon City on Tuesday, May 9 2023. The National Grid Corporation declared a red alert status on the Luzon grid on Monday, raising the possibility of power shortage or brownouts in some provinces. The NGCP also said that three power plants are “running on derated capacities” and other five are “on forced outage”. Maria Tan, ABS-CBN News

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ELECTRICITY-GRID

ABS-CBN News

<p>MANILA (<strong>UPDATED</strong>) — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said systems loss charges must not be charged to the electricity bills of consumers in his fifth State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday.</p><p>&quot;Panahon na para tanggalin na natin ang systems loss na pinapasa sa konsyumer,&quot; Marcos said to the applause of the audience at his speech before the joint houses of Congress.</p><p>The systems loss charge is a fee for power that is lost because of pilferage, as well as technical factors like the heat in wires and transformers.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2026/4/30/what-charges-make-up-your-meralco-bill-1651" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">What charges make up your Meralco bill?</a></div><p>&quot;Pinapasa ito sa konsyumer at kinakarga sa bill na pinapatungan pa ng value-added tax. Hindi naman kasalanan ng konsyumer kung bakit nagkaroon ng systems loss. Kaya hindi naman tama na kailangan sila pa ang pagbabayarin dito,&quot; the president said.</p><p>Meralco, the largest private sector electric distribution utility company in the country, charges 5% System Loss as part of the generation and transmission costs paid to generation companies and National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>Amend EPIRA</strong></div><p>&quot;Therefore, we the people request--no, we demand for the immediate amendment of the EPIRA and to prohibit charging systems loss against consumers including the value-added tax thereon.&quot;</p><p>The EPIRA or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act was enacted in 2001 and was supposed to lower power costs through competition and power sector reforms.</p><p>But government think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies said in 2018 that &quot;[d]ue to its perceived ineffectiveness, however, the law has been subjected to a number of criticisms with some calling for its review, if not an outright repeal.&quot;</p><p>The Department of Energy (DOE) said after the SONA that it backs Marcos Jr.&#x27;s call for amendment of the EPIRA.</p><p>&quot;The time has come to ensure that our legal and regulatory framework keeps up with today&#x27;s realities,&quot; the DOE said. &quot;The electricity sector has evolved significantly, with advances in technology, smarter electricity networks, and a rapidly changing energy landscape.&quot;</p><p>&quot;Our policies must likewise evolve to deliver a power sector that is more efficient, transparent, accountable, and responsive to the needs of the Filipino consumers.&quot;</p><p>The DOE says it will work with Congress, the Energy Regulatory Commission, industry stakeholders, and consumer groups in order to implement Marcos Jr.&#x27;s directives. </p><div><br/></div><div><strong>Sariling kuryente</strong></div><p>Marcos also called on Congress to pass a law which aims to make installing rooftop solar power systems easier.</p><p>&quot;Upang maging simple, madali, at abot-kaya ang pagpapakabit ng solar panels at battery storage system sa kanilang mga bahay, hinihiling ko ang tulong ng Kongreso para maipasa ang “Sariling Kuryente” Act,&quot; Marcos said.</p><div><br/></div><div><strong>Lawmaker reacts</strong> </div><p>A progressive lawmaker welcomed Marcos’ push to remove the systems loss charges from electricity bills. </p><p>Bicol Saro Party-list Representative Terry Ridon, who sits on the House Committee on Energy, said lawmakers must immediately pass legislation prohibiting distribution utilities from recovering system losses through consumers’ electricity bills. </p><p>“The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), for its part, should immediately review its existing rules and exercise the full extent of its authority to minimize system loss charges pending congressional action,” Ridon added. </p><p>“It must disallow recoveries arising from inefficiency, poor system maintenance, electricity theft and other preventable causes, and impose stricter efficiency and accountability standards on distribution utilities,” he added. </p><p>Based on an illustrative system loss charge of P0.7413 per kilowatt-hour, a household consuming 200 kWh would save approximately P148.26 per month if the charge were fully removed, Ridon said. </p><p>Consumers have been <a href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/news/business/2026/6/19/meralco-responds-to-viral-complaint-about-p90k-electric-bill-1721" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">complaining</a> about their power bills for months.</p><p>Power distributor Meralco, however, has explained that other charges on electricity bills are mandated by the government. Meralco said the systems loss charge is “part of the generation and transmission costs paid to generation companies and [the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines].” </p><p>In May, the ERC suspended the collection of the Green Energy Auction Allowance (GEA-All)—used to fund renewable energy projects like solar, wind, and hydro—for the May and June 2026 electric bills. </p><p>The suspension has since been extended to August.</p>

<p>President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said systems loss charges must not be charged to the electricity bills of consumers.</p>

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said systems loss charges must not be charged to the electricity bills of consumers.

Marcos wants systems loss charges removed from electricity bill; rooftop solar made easier

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Marcos wants systems loss charges removed from electricity bill; rooftop solar made easier

Benise Balaoing,

ABS-CBN News

Published July 27, 2026 05:27 PM PHT

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Updated July 27, 2026 08:58 PM PHT

Read More:

meralco

systems loss

kuryente

electric bill

rooftop solar

sariling kuryente

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