POWER DISTRIBUTOR Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) expects to surpass its P43-billion profit target for the year, according to its chairman.

“Based on the strength of Meralco’s financial and operating results for the nine months accompanied by a continuing positive outlook, we expect to exceed the P43-billion profit guidance we set out in the first half, paving the way for another year of record earnings,” Meralco Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Manuel V. Pangilinan said during a briefing on Monday.

For the third quarter, Meralco saw its consolidated core net income (CCNI) increase by 10% to P11.89 billion from P10.82 billion last year, driven by strong distribution and power generation businesses.

The third-quarter core net income was driven by the combined effects of higher sales volume of the distribution utility (DU), higher contribution from Global Business Power Corp., and earnings from the spot market, according to Betty C. Siy-Yap, Meralco’s senior vice-president and chief finance officer.

“Our third-quarter performance held the double-digit growth in Meralco’s nine-month CCNI, driven by the continued growth momentum of the DU, power generation, and RES (retail electricity supply) segments,” Mr. Pangilinan said.

For the nine months ending in September, Meralco’s core net income rose by 17% to P35.1 billion from P30 billion a year earlier.

Consolidated revenues grew by 6% to P335.4 billion from P335.2 billion previously, mainly due to the 7% increase in volume sold by the distribution utility as well as the increase in transmission charge.

Meralco said that power sales from the distribution utility reached 40,872 gigawatt-hours as residential and commercial segments rose by 10% and 8%, respectively.

Singapore-based PacificLight Power Pte. Ltd., a subsidiary of Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGen), posted a 29% decline in its core net income to P9.5 billion.

San Buenaventura Power Ltd. Co.’s core net income went down by 2% to P2.8 billion, while Global Business Power saw its earnings jump by 62% to P2.2 billion.

MGen’s renewable energy arm, MGen Renewable Energy, Inc., recorded a core net income of P51 million, down 48%.

Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT Inc.

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