Visayan Electric Company serves Cebu City, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, Talisay, Liloan, Consolacion and Compostela. Here is the current residential rate, what it means for every appliance in the house, and how it compares with the rest of the country.
The VECO all-in residential rate is ₱13.74 per kWh as of June 2026, which is 7.1 percent below the Meralco rate of ₱14.78. A household using 200 kWh a month would see a bill near ₱2,748.
Why VECO charges what it does
VECO serves Metro Cebu and sits below Meralco but above the Mindanao utilities. Cebu has been under repeated Red and Yellow Alerts as Visayas grid reserves tightened, which pushes spot-market purchases and therefore the generation charge.
The structure is the same everywhere. Generation is 55 to 64 percent of the bill and is bought and passed through without markup. Transmission goes to the grid operator. Distribution is the utility own share. Taxes, universal charges and subsidies go to government. When a bill jumps, generation is almost always the reason.
What appliances cost on VECO
| Appliance | Watts | Per hour | Per month | vs Meralco/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.5HP Aircon | 1,300 W | ₱18 | ₱4,287 | −₱3,960 |
| 1HP Aircon | 900 W | ₱12 | ₱2,968 | −₱2,742 |
| Refrigerator | 150 W | ₱2 | ₱495 | −₱457 |
| Electric Fan | 60 W | ₱1 | ₱247 | −₱228 |
| Rice Cooker | 700 W | ₱10 | ₱289 | −₱267 |
| Water Dispenser | 550 W | ₱8 | ₱1,360 | −₱1,257 |
| LED TV | 60 W | ₱1 | ₱124 | −₱114 |
| Shower Water Heater | 3,500 W | ₱48 | ₱721 | −₱666 |
The final column is the annual difference against running the identical appliance in Meralco territory. Over a household of several appliances that gap compounds into real money, which is why the same lifestyle costs noticeably different amounts in Davao and Manila.
Bill by monthly consumption
| Monthly kWh | Bill at ₱13.74 | Same usage on Meralco |
|---|---|---|
| 100 kWh | ₱1,374 | ₱1,478 |
| 200 kWh | ₱2,748 | ₱2,957 |
| 300 kWh | ₱4,122 | ₱4,435 |
| 400 kWh | ₱5,496 | ₱5,913 |
| 500 kWh | ₱6,870 | ₱7,392 |
| 800 kWh | ₱10,992 | ₱11,827 |
Solar in the VECO franchise
This area averages roughly 5.2 peak sun hours a day. A 5 kW grid-tied system would produce about 624 kWh a month, worth ₱8,574 at the VECO rate. At installed prices of ₱225,000 to ₱375,000, that puts simple payback around 2.2 to 3.6 years if you consume the output yourself.
Export credits here run near ₱5.00 per kWh rather than the retail rate, so surplus sent back is worth roughly a third of what you save by using it. Size the array to your daytime load rather than your total bill and the payback figure above holds; size it to the bill and it stretches.
Questions people actually ask
[hed_faq]Magkano ang kuryente sa VECO?Humigit-kumulang ₱13.74 kada kWh noong June 2026. Nagbabago ito buwan-buwan dahil sa generation charge, kaya tingnan ang aktwal na bill mo.
Is VECO cheaper than Meralco?Yes. At ₱13.74 it is 7.1 percent below the Meralco rate, which over a year is a meaningful difference on an identical household.
Why did my VECO bill increase?Almost always the generation charge, which is repriced monthly against fuel costs, the peso-dollar rate and the wholesale spot market. The second most common cause is simply more cooling hours during the dry season.
Does the lifeline discount apply here?Yes. The national lifeline threshold applies to every distribution utility. Households consuming 50 kWh or less receive a full discount, 51 to 70 kWh receive 35 percent, and 71 to 100 kWh receive 20 percent, applied automatically.[/hed_faq]