Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the country’s largest distribution utility, reported a P11.2-billion consolidated core net income (CCNI) for the first quarter, up 10 percent from P10.1 billion in the same period last year.

At a press briefing on Monday, Meralco chief financial officer Betty C. Siy-Yap reported that the company’s consolidated reported net income during the period grew by 8.9 percent to P10.4 billion from last year’s P9.6 billion.

The company attributed the growth to sustained energy sales growth and robust performance of the power generation and retail businesses driven by higher power demand.

“You see the first quarter results and it’s sort of an indicator that it’s going to be a tough year for several reasons,” Meralco chairman and chief executive officer Manuel V. Pangilinan said. 

While it is still too early to predict full-year growth, Pangilinan said that the company continues to target double-digit CCNI growth.

Pangilinan also noted that the approval of a 25-year franchise allows the company “to enhance our services, and ensure that our stakeholders receive the best value from partnering with us for development.” 

Based on Meralco’s financial report, consolidated revenues from January to March also clocked in at P114.5 billion, 10 percent higher than P104.5 billion last year primarily due to higher pass-through charges and energy fees. 

Meralco’s average retail rate, on the other hand, increased by 3 percent to P11.06 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) from P10.78 per kWh last year. 

According to Meralco, spending during the quarter reached P25.4 billion, the bulk of which, or P18.3 billion was utilized for the development of the MTerra Solar project in Nueva Ecija.

The remaining balance was allocated for the development of MGreen’s solar projects, Miescor Infrastructure Development Corp.’s purchase of an additional 154 telecommunication towers from Globe, and the construction of build-to-suit towers.

As of the end of March, Meralco’s customer count stood at 8.1 million, up 3 percent from 7.9 million a year ago as the energization of new customers for both ordinary service and project-covered applications continued.