by Lenie Lectura - August 21, 2016
THE Manila Electric Co. (Meralco)
remains upbeat on the power sector under the Duterte administration, even as it
recently reported lower earnings in the first half of the year.
“Innovation and technological
transformations, increased productivity, international quality product and
service offerings and resilient brick-and-mortar business remain high in the
business agenda of Meralco and its subsidiaries,” said Meralco Chairman Manuel
V. Pangilian.
Pangilinan said the company is
bullish on the country’s growth, which is expected to be sustained by the
required infrastructure and support facilities development.
“The new government’s indicative
openness to unsolicited offers for major projects is very encouraging,” he
said.
The utility firm’s second-quarter
net income declined to P5.271 billion, from P7.326 billion, dragging its
first-half performance to P10.768 billion, from P11.747 billion.
Core profit in the second quarter
was also down to P5.298 billion, from P7.225 billion in the same period last
year. From January to June this year, Meralco’s core income dropped by 10.8
percent to P10.388 billion, from P11.747 billion.
Total energy sales for the first semester
grew 11 percent year-on-year to 19,717 gigawatt-hours, with the highest single
month consolidated sales volume recorded in June.
The warmer temperature, increase in
number of customers, record-low inflation and low electricity prices
contributed to the record sales performance.
For the second half of the year,
Pangilinan said Meralco is anticipating a single-digit volume growth. This
expectation will also lead to a full-year volume growth at about “8 percent to
10 percent, absent destructive weather disturbances.”
“Considering the impact of the
interim rate implemented since July 2015, we guide our full-year results to be
around P19 billion,” Pangilinan said earlier.
The Energy Regulatory Commission
ordered Meralco last year to implement a lower distribution rate of P1.39 per
kilowatt hour.
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