Pangilinan: 2023 will be a 'good year' for Meralco

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan on Tuesday expressed optimism that 2023 will be a "good year" for the power distributor, as its generation entities are set to contribute more to its bottom line.

Sought for comment on the performance of its power generation units, Pangilinan said that while losses were incurred in the past year, management has already been tasked to turn this around.

“We should see a significant uptick in the profits of the generation part of the business… It will be a good year for the generation business, so I think to allay your concerns, and I think a good year for Meralco as whole,” he said during the firm’s annual stockholders’ meeting.

Meralco counts as subsidiary Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGen), which in turn fully owns Global Business Power Corp. (GBP), which serves as an independent power producer in the Visayas region with presence in Mindanao and the Mindoro islands.

“This year, GBP as a whole and MGen as a whole itself has already turned positive and is contributing to Meralco’s bottom line with the end of the fixed-rate contracts, so we should see a significant uptick in the profits of the generation part of the business,” Pangilinan said.

Meralco reported a consolidated core net income of P9 billion in the first quarter, reflecting a 40% growth from a year earlier. Consolidated revenues jumped 23% to P105.6 billion.

Meralco constructs, operates, and maintains electric distribution systems in the cities and municipalities of Bulacan, Cavite, Metro Manila, and Rizal, as well as certain areas in the provinces of Batangas, Laguna, Pampanga, and Quezon.

The firm counts as subsidiaries and associates Vantage Energy Solutions and Management Inc. and MeridianX Inc., acting as retail electricity suppliers in Luzon and the Visayas. —VAL, GMA Integrated News