Meralco seeks nod of ERC for P149-B capex program
BY LENIE LECTURA – MARCH 28, 2022
from Business Mirror
THE MANILA Electric Co. (Meralco) is seeking regulatory approval for its proposed fifth regulatory period capital expenditure (5RP capex) amounting to P149.652 billion.
The 5RP will commence on July 1, 2022 and end on June 30, 2026.
In a filing with the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) for its application for approval of the annual revenue requirement and performance incentive scheme for 2023 to 2026, the utility firm proposed a capex of P37,533,728,331 for 2023; P43,495,962,814 for 2024; P36,373,833,274 for 2025; and P32,248,981,088 for 2026.
Meralco’s regulatory year begins on July 1 and ends on June 30 of the following year.
It submitted for approval its proposed 5RP capex, following the latest Rules for Setting Distribution Wheeling Rates position paper and planning criteria in the ERC’s Investor-Owned Distribution Utility Planning Manual last March 16 and was posted on the ERC website over the weekend.
The proposed capex is meant to augment Meralco’s network to meet demand growth, to refurbish and replace aging and obsolete assets, to relocate assets that are affected by the construction of government infrastructure, to purchase and construct non-network assets for its distribution system, to deploy automation and technology projects as well as innovative solutions for various electrification projects, and to comply with regulatory requirements.
Meralco said some major capex projects, which were delayed “due to difficulties such as the Covid-19 pandemic,” will be part of the 5RP RAB (Regulatory Asset Base) computations.
For the 5RP, Meralco is also proposing the implementation of its Advanced Metering Infrastructure Program. AMI is an integrated system of smart meters, communication networks and data management systems that enables two-way communication between utilities and customers.
The smart meters can handle prepaid and postpaid electricity services. Subscribers with smart meters can manage their electricity usage and budget through consumption information, alerts and notifications.
Meralco reported in February that its core profit grew by 13 percent to P24.6 billion last year from P21.7 billion in 2020. Net income, meanwhile, jumped by 44 percent year-on-year to P23.5 billion from P16.3 billion due to the absence of exceptional charges arising from the impairment recognized in 2020 on its investment in PacificLight Power Pte. Ltd.
Consolidated revenues went up by 16 percent to P318.5 billion from P275.3 billion, mainly driven by electricity revenues, which grew by 15 percent to P309.2 billion.
Energy sales volumes returned to near pre-pandemic levels as customer count reached 7.4 million at end-2021.
