Meralco hikes 5-year capex to P154 B

MANILA, Philippines - Manila Electric Co., the country’s biggest power distributor, is setting aside  P154 billion in capital expenditures from 2016 to 2020 to expand its distribution and generation business.

Of the total, P91 billion will go to investments in distribution and P63 billion to boost the generation business.

The P154 billion capex program is significantly higher than the P86 billion earmarked for 2010- 2015.

This year alone, Meralco is pouring in P25.7 billion in capex to improve its distribution business.In a recent briefing, Meralco group treasurer and first vice president Rafael Andrada said a higher investment is needed to meet the ever increasing demand for higher  quality and reliable power supply.

“Customers require higher efficiencies and higher service levels therefore the need also to address reliability and quality parameters in our distribution network, which will total to 26 percent,” Andrada said.

 He said investments to built more typhoon resilient facilities would get 13 percent of next year’s capex while investments to upgrade IT infrastructure would get a six percent share.

 Andrada said the overall goal is to provide heavy capital expenditures in new power distribution infrastructure and technologies as well as investments in efficient and reliable power generation.

Meralco is also building robust platforms and driving technology and digital innovations to further enhance quality service and respond to fast-changing customer needs.

Its power generation projects through Meralco’s MGen and its partners include the 600 megawatt coal-fired power plant in Subic by Redondo Peninsula Energy, the 12,00 coal-fired power plant in Atimonan and 455 MW coal-fired power plant in Mauban.

Meralco’s posted a net income of P16.15 billion in the nine months ending September, up 13 percent from the P14.31 billion recorded in the same period last year on higher power sales, which rose nearly five percent to 27,496 gigawatt hours during the period.