A REPRESENTATIVE from Davao Light and Power Company (Davao Light) said that with the increasing demand for electricity and power supply in Mindanao, the power rate for consumers is expected to increase.
Fermin Edillon, reputation enhancement manager of Davao Light, said during the AFP-PNP press conference on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, at the Royal Mandaya Hotel that some of the contributing factors to high electricity bills are the frequent and maximal usage of home appliances such as air conditioners and electric fans.
“It could be ang electric fan it could be three hours to four hours mahimo na siyag 24/7, kadaghan, so musaka gyud ang consmption. Or atong aircon ato ni siyang pirmaninting gamiton, before tag two hours, three hours lang nimo gamiton, tapos karon nag extend ka’g five hours, six,seven, eight hours, definitely ang imohang consumption ana musaka jud kay longer man nimo gigamit ang isa ka appliance,” he said.
(It could be that you were using the electric fan before for two to four hours but this time you are using it 24/7 so the consumption increases. Or before, you were using the aircon for three hours, but recently you extended use to five or eight hours definitely, the consumption will increase because you consume electricity longer for your appliances).
Another thing is the increase in rate per kilowatt hour due to high demand.
He said the demand in February 2024 was 432 megawatts, then it increased in March to 479 megawatts, and by April, the demand further increased to 536 megawatts. This upward trend in demand is a significant factor in the increase in power rate.
“Kung kaya lang na ma-manage nato, kung kaya lang na i-reduce nato ang paggamit sa aircon, kung kaya nato i-reduce ang number of hours na gamiton atong mga electric fans dako kaayo na’g impact sa atong bill na dili musaka (If we can manage and reduce the use of aircon or reduce the number of hours of electric fan usage, that is already big impact in retaining our electric bill),” he added.
Edillon also said that Mindanao still has enough electricity supply with 493 megawatts still available. Maerielle Luchavez, Addu Intern