Optimistic of a more resilient business performance amid growing demand, Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) forecasts a sales growth of 6 to 8 percent in the first half of the year.

“We see a good second quarter. In fact, for April, we’re seeing around at least (an) 8 percent growth, and maybe until June, we will grow between 6 and 8 percent — that gives us a good first half number,” Meralco senior vice president and chief revenue officer Ferdinand Geluz said in a briefing.

Geluz noted that during the third quarter, La Niña might potentially influence the company’s energy sales but that it will not adversely impact its overall growth targets.

During the first quarter, consolidated distribution utility energy sales volumes rose to 12,307 gigawatt-hours (GWh) from 11,287 GWh last year, as volumes of Meralco and Clark Electric Distribution Corp. increased by 9 percent and 7 percent, respectively.

The commercial segment took up the biggest share of the total energy sales mix at 38 percent while residential and industrial accounted for 34 percent and 28 percent, respectively.

Commercial sales volumes recorded double-digit growth of 11 percent to 4,678 GWh, from 4,213 GWh in the previous year, which exceeded its pre-pandemic performance.

Cooling appliances

Meanwhile, residential electricity sales jumped by 12 percent to reach 4,144 GWh from last year’s 3,701 GWh due to the prolonged use of cooling appliances at home due to El Niño.

In the industrial sector, electricity sales rebounded to 3,448 GWh, reflecting a 3 percent growth over the same period in 2023, when sales stood at 3,336 GWh.

The semiconductor sector served as a driver for this growth, as key accounts ramped up operational activities to expand their production of electric vehicle chips.

The sustained energy sales, along with the robust performance of the power generation and retail businesses, has helped Meralco generate a P10.1-billion consolidated core net income from January to March, up 11 percent from P9 billion in the same period last year.

As of the end of March, Meralco’s customer count stood at 7.9 million, up 3 percent from 7.7 million a year ago as the energization of new customers for both ordinary service and project-covered applications continued.