By Lenie Lectura - December 7, 2018
THE Manila Electric Co. (Meralco)
plans to secure next year additional capacities of 300 megawatts to 350 MW to
meet the growing demand of its customers for the summer months of 2019.
“[We need] roughly 300 MW to 350
MW,” Meralco President Oscar Reyes said when asked if the utility firm was
looking at sourcing additional capacity for next year.
He said the utility firm is in
initial discussions with at least two power-generation firms engaged in clean
coal power business. In the end, Meralco may opt to source all 300 MW to 350 MW
from one power producer. “It could be one, depending on discussions.”
Reyes earlier said demand for
electricity is expected to grow by 4.5 percent to 5 percent for the full year
2018.
“We’ll probably end this year at about
4.5 percent to 5 percent. I think we have to see what the final November and
December figures are, but call it 4.5-percent to 5-percent growth for this
year,” he said.
Because of that growth, “we expect
slightly better bottom line” at Meralco in 2018, he added.
In 2017 Meralco recorded a 3-percent
increase in core net income to P20.2 billion. Reported net income was up 6
percent to P20.38 billion.
In the first nine months of the
year, Meralco reported a core net income of P16.69 billion, higher by 8.6 percent
from P15.37 billion a year ago. Reported profit rose 14.3 percent to P18.21
billion, from P15.93 billion previously.
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