Meralco sales inched up in January
Power distributor giant Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) saw improved energy sales in January despite the absence of El Niño conditions that heated up its growth in early 2024.
Meralco senior vice president and chief revenue officer Ferdinand Geluz said consolidated power sales in January inched up to 4,061 gigawatt hours (GWh) in January.
This was a 0.4-percent increase when “compared with high base January 2024, 4,045 GWh—which experienced significant increase due to El Niño,” the official said in a statement.
El Niño is a weather phenomenon characterized by higher temperatures, leading to increased use of cooling equipment such as air-conditioners.
But even without El Niño, both residential and commercial sectors recorded a slight growth, with sales reaching 1,425 GWh and 1,564 GWh, respectively, which can be attributed to the increase in Meralco’s customer base.
Sales would have been even higher if not for a “slowdown in demand” due to long weekend holidays that dampened household and business electricity consumption.
Industrial sales in the month, however, dipped by 0.3 percent to 1,059 GWh from a year ago’s 1,063 GWh.
The Meralco executive said this was due to “intermittent shutdowns of key accounts in F&B (food and beverage) and steel.”
Distribution
Meralco’s franchise area covers Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Rizal and select areas in Pampanga, Laguna, Batangas and Quezon.
The power giant has more than 8 million customers.
For its nine-month performance in 2024, Meralco’s distribution business continued to provide the largest chunk, contributing 59 percent or P20.5 billion to its earnings.
Power generation came next with P8.9 billion, while retail electricity supply operations and nonelectricity businesses chipped in P5.7 billion.
Tycoon Manuel V. Pangilinan, the group’s chair, previously said that Meralco may spend more for this year as the construction of the massive Terra Solar project is in full swing.
Pangilinan did not disclose any figures. But in 2024, the group allotted P40 billion.
Meanwhile, Meralco executive vice president and chief operating officer Ronnie Aperocho said the company had earmarked P25 billion for the power distribution business’ operations, slightly higher than P24 billion last year.
Aperocho said the bulk would be spent on “grid resilience and strengthening of the networks” given the series of storms hitting the Philippines.
