Meralco's profit more than doubles on rate hike, energy sales rise

Profits of Meralco, the Philippines’ largest electric company, more than doubled after it sold increased volumes of energy, imposed higher distribution charges, and expanded its customer base. Core net income reached P2 billion from January to March this year, 135 percent more than the P0.8 billion reported last year, the company said in a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE). Similarly, the company’s consolidated reported net income also surged 127 percent to P2 billion for the same period. Consolidated revenues reached P61.1 billion during the first quarter of this year, more than a one-third increase compared to the same period last year. Volume of energy sold for the first quarter was 6,996 gigawatt hours, 14 percent more than volumes sold during the same period last year, Meralco said. Starting April, Meralco was allowed to hike distribution charges by 26.47 centavos per kilowatt hour (kWh) despite being forced to implement a series of scheduled brownouts after a power supply shortfall. Rockwell Land Corp., a Meralco subsidiary that currently develops three condominiums in Metro Manila, recorded sales of P700 million. The figure is up by more than a tenth from the year-ago level. Customers of Meralco rose by three percent to 4.7 million as of the end of the quarter. Customers from the industrial sector — which include the semiconductor, transport, storage, and construction industries — posted a 29-percent growth. Clients from commercial and residential sectors also reported 11 percent and seven-percent increases, respectively. The company’s consolidated costs and expenses for the period increased by almost a third to P58 billion, the company said. Capital expenditures jumped by almost a third to P1.6 billion, which it attributed to increased system requirements. The company’s consolidated debt balance stood at P20.8 billion. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) reached P5 billion, more than half higher than the 2009 level, or a margin of eight percent. Core earnings per share, meanwhile, more than doubled to P1.757 per share. “We are bracing Meralco for the start of open access, mapping out our plans for an aggressive approach to defending our core markets. We will aggressively expand our real estate business as we pursue growth opportunities for our service subsidiaries," Meralco Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Manuel Lopez said in the same statement. Shares of Meralco was unchanged at P173.00 during Thursday’s trading at the PSE. - Pauline Nikka A. Corsino/RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV