MERALCO GUIDELINES IN GRANTING NEW RESIDENTIAL SERVICE

Introduction

This is a general overview of the policies, standards and guidelines of Meralco’s

existing Service Standards in Granting New Residential Service. For the complete
standards including drawings and specifications, please contact our Technical Support
Engineers at your nearest Meralco Business Office.

This guideline outlines the requirements for granting separation of electricservice from an
existing residential service. This covers separation of service for residentia units, separation
of service for commercial units and separation of service for support facilities.

Separation of Service for Residential Units

Applications for separation of service from ametered residential unit or building intended for
a residential unit may be granted, provided that all of the following conditions and technical
requirements are met:

The unit applied for separate service has a minimum foor area of 18 square
meters.

There are physical manifestations of permanent occupancy including a permanent

kitchen, comfort room, and adequate washing and drainage facilities.

The unit must be separated from the original unit and/or other unit(s) by an
occupancy separation wall. The separation wall must be extended from the
foundation beyond the ceiling to (but not protruding) the roof of the building.

The wall can be any of the following:

Solid masonry with minimum thickness of 100 mm (4 inches);

Hollow unit masonry with minimum thickness of 150 mm (6 inches);

Solid concrete with minimum thickness of 100 mm (4 inches);

Fiber cement board with a minimum thickness of 4.5 mm, double-walled. The
construction. The construction must conform to the specifications provided
below.
For multi-foor buildings, the foor and ceiling to separate a unit from the unit below
and above it must be solid reinforced concrete slab with a minimum thickness of 100
mm (4 inches).

There must be no openings on the occupancy separation walls between units nor
access between units.

There should be an independent access from the outside or from the common
areas.

The residential unit should have a separate and independent wiring system that is
compliant with the latest edition of the Philippine Electrical Code, and with
Meralco’s existing standards on service entrance installation.There must be no
interconnection at the load side electrical wirings.

The applicant(s) /customer(s) must be of good customer record and should not have
any arrears such as service irregularities, illegal service connection or violations of
contract.

The applicant must submit a sketch plan showing the layout of the areas intended
for residential units.

The applicant must also comply with all other general requirements as may be
required by the offce handling the service application for separation of service.

Residential units whose entrance or access is through other units are not qualifed
for separate service.
.
Residential units separated by frewalls are entitled to service drop or lateral if all of the
requirements are complied with. Moreover, frewalls must conform to the following
specifcations in order for the unit to be qualifed for separate service drop or lateral:

The frewall must start at the foundation and extend continuously through all storeys
to and above the roof.

The minimum extension above the roof is 1000 mm, except for buildings covered by
economic and socialized housings as defned and coveredby Batas Pambansa 220
where a minimum extension of 300 mm is allowed. The frewallmust also extend
horizontally up to a minimum distance of 300 mm beyond the outmost edge of the
abutting living units.

Separation of Service for Commercial Units

Applications for separate service from a metered residential unit intended for commercial
units may be granted provided the following requirements are complied with:

The unit must be separated from the original unit and other units by a horizontal
occupancy separation wall. This wall must be extendedfrom the foundation beyond
the ceiling to (but not protruding) the roof of the building.

This can be any of the following:

Solid masonry with minimum thickness of 100 mm (4 inches);

Hollow unit masonry with minimum thickness of 150 mm (6 inches);

Solid concrete with minimum thickness of 100 mm (4 inches);

Fiber cement with a minimum thickness of 4.5 mm, double-walled. The

construction must conform to the specifcations provided in the preceding
section of this guideline.
 For multi-foor buildings, foor and ceiling to separate a unit from the unit below and
above it must be solid reinforced concrete slab with a minimum thickness of 100 mm
(4 inches).

There must be no openings on the occupancy separation walls between units nor
access between units.

Each unit has exclusive ingress and egress provisions. Elevators and stairs must
be part of the common areas unless designed for private use.

There is separate and independent wiring system compliant with the latest
provisions of the Philippine Electrical Code, and with applicable existing Meralco
standards on service entrance installations. There must be no interconnection at the
load side electrical wirings.

The applicant(s)/customer(s) must be of good customer record and should not have
any arrears such as service irregularities, illegal service connection or violation of
contract.

The applicant must submit a sketch plan showing the layout of the areas intended
for commercial units.

The applicant must also comply with all othergeneral requirements as may be
required by the offce handling the service application for separation of service.

Separation of Service for Support Facilities

Support facilities for common domestic use of more than one (1) metered units or buildings
may be granted with separate service provided all of the following conditions are met :

There is only one service for all of the support facilities.

 The applicant(s)/customer(s) must be of good customer record and should not have
any arrears such as service irregularities, illegal service connection or violations of
contract.

There is a separate wiring installation for the support facilities, distinct from the
existing installations. The applicant’s wiring installation must comply with the latest
edition of Philippine Electrical Code.

For water pump, there must be permanent water lines to each residential or
commercial unit.

The applicant must comply with standard requirements specifed herein.

Support facilities for the use of single-metered residential, commercial and other
types of units/buildings will not be granted a separate service.

“Sa Meralco, may liwanag ang buhay.”

END OF DOCUMENT