PRICES at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market dropped by more than half in the first seven months of the year due to the commercial operations of WESM Visayas, Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras said over the weekend.
“Lower spot price in WESM is attributed to the entry of WESM Visayas. Because of WESM Visayas, supply has stabilized, prices have come down, and new investors are coming in,” Almendras said.
He said WESM prices declined to P3.855 per kilowatt-hour for January to July from P7.595 per kWh for the same period last year.
WESM is a centralized venue for buyers and sellers to trade electricity as a commodity where its prices is based on actual use [demand] and availability [supply].
WESM in Luzon started commercial operations in 2006, but it was only last Dec. 26, 2010 that WESM Luzon was integrated with WESM Visayas, making available excess capacities in Luzon to the Visayas and vice versa.
WESM was created by Republic Act 9136, the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001. This provided for the establishment of an electricity market that reflects the actual cost of electricity and lowers its price through more efficient production through competition.
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