Meralco posted 4% higher electricity sales in June

By Lenie Lectura - July 3, 2017

http://www.businessmirror.com.ph/meralco-posted-4-higher-electricity-sales-in-june/

THE Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) posted over 4 percent in electricity-sales growth last month compared to the same month a year ago buoyed by the continued electricity demand across all sectors.

“The June numbers of Meralco, in terms of billed volume of power, rose by about 4.2 percent against last year, June to June volume,” Meralco Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said.

When asked what factors led to the June 2017 versus June 2016 growth, Meralco Senior Vice President Alfredo Panlilio said, “All customer classes were up, driven by the residential segment.”

Meralco’s customer base grew by over 4 percent to 6.1 million customers as of end-March this year. Residential customers make up 92 percent of the total number.

Pangilinan said the historic growth rate per month is “about 3 percent”. As such, compared to previous years, the June sales growth is still a good number, he said.

“Remember the base is quite high,” Pangilinan said.

The utility firm recorded P4.8 billion in net income for the first quarter of the year, up 6 percent from the same period last year, mainly on account of higher revenues.

Revenues grew by 10.6 percent to P66.6 billion at end-March this year, from P60.1 billion in the same period last year.

Core profit from January to March this year stood at P4.6 billion, similar to last year’s numbers.

Meralco President Oscar Reyes noted a lower growth in energy sales from January to March this year compared from the same period a year ago “which is quite unique”.

In a report, Meralco’s core profit was largely from contribution of the core distribution business as sales volume grew to 9,317 gigawatt hours  (GWh) or a growth of  only 3 percent over the same comparative period.

Reyes said the first quarter of the year saw a cooler temperature. There was also an absence of the February 2016 leap-year effect, which is equivalent to approximately 100 GWh of lower energy sales, higher inflation, higher interest rates, a weaker peso and higher fuel prices, among other factors.

Notwithstanding these less favorable factors, growth in energy sales volume continued, albeit at a slower 3-percent level, due to the expansion in Meralco’s customer base and strong consumer spending spurred by inward remittances by overseas Filipinos and the continuing growth of the business-process outsourcing industry.