Monsoon rains fail to dent sales of Meralco in September

By Lenie Lectura – October 8, 2024
from Business Mirror

The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) saw its energy sales rise by 7.1 percent year-on-year at end-September due to the strong demand from residential and commercial subscribers.

Electricity sales in January to September reached 40,331 gigawatt hours (GWh). The residential segment registered an annual increase of 10 percent; commercial, 8 percent; and the industrial sector, 2 percent.

In September alone, Meralco electricity sales stood at 4,553.51 GWh. This was an increase of over 3 percent from the same month last year.

“September seems tempered given El Niño in September last year. Now, it’s a transition to La Niña but it’s expected and is above our internal target for September growth,” Meralco Senior Vice President and Chief Revenue Officer Ferdinand Geluz told reporters in an interview.

Meralco has nearly 8 million subscribers in its franchise areas.

The utility firm is expecting full-year core income to hit P43 billion this year, higher than earlier guidance of P40 billion.

“Due to Meralco’s strong operational and financial performance in the first half of the year, we are prepared to upgrade our initial guidance of P40 billion CCNI [consolidated core net income] to P43 billion CCNI for the full year 2024,” said Meralco Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan in an earlier statement.

At end-June, Meralco’s CCNI jumped by 21 percent to P23.2 billion from P19.2 billion in the same period last year driven by higher sales volumes of the distribution utility, and increased sales in the second quarter due to higher availability of power generation plants.

The House of Representatives moved closer to granting a new 25-year franchise to the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the country’s largest power distribution company, after approving House Bill (HB) 10926 on second reading last month.

The bill, which was passed through viva voce voting, consolidated three separate measures—HB 9793, 9813, and 10317—that seek an extension of Meralco’s franchise, which is set to expire in 2028.

The third and final reading is expected to take place as early as November 4, when Congress reconvenes after its break.