The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) is close to meeting its 2016 core net profit target of P19 billion on the back of better performance in the third quarter of the year, its officials said yesterday.
In the third quarter of 2016, core net income rose 10 percent to P4.6 billion from P4.154 billion in the same period in 2015.
“The third quarter is 30 percent of the core income of P15 billion,” Meralco senior vice president (SVP) and chief financial officer (CFO) Betty Siy-Yap said.
Siy-Yap also said the company’s core net income declined by five percent to P14.96 billion as of end-September, compared to P15.8 billion in the same period the previous year.
Reported net income for the period also fell three percent to P15.68 billion from P16.15 billion in 2015.
Revenues went down one percent from P197.05 billion to P195.16 billion for the nine-month period despite an increase in year-to-date energy sales.
This is due to generation costs pulled down by lower fuel prices, Siy-Yap said.
“We saw average fuel prices all for coal, gas and oil at record low,” she said.
Malampaya gas is priced at $6.1376 per GJ., oil at $38.98 per barrel, and coal at $54.36 per metric ton.
Meralco chairman Manuel Pangilinan is confident the company will meet its P19 billion target for the full year.
“Meralco typically produces more than P1 billion a month in core net income and we’re about P15 billion in nine months… So we’re between P3 billion and P4 billion away [from the target],” he said.
Pangilinan said growth in customer base and demand will drive the company to meet its target. As of end-September, Meralco has 5.98 million customers.
“We continue to add customers at three to four percent and then demand continues to grow,” he added.
“We’re going to hit 6 million customers some time this month,” Meralco SVP Alfredo Panlilio said.