MANILA ELECTRIC CO. (Meralco) expects flat energy sales this year as milder weather curbs demand, but anticipates a rebound in 2026 on the back of aggressive energization and normalizing temperatures.
Meralco Senior Vice-President and Chief Revenue Officer Ferdinand O. Geluz told reporters last week that full-year energy sales could range from a 0.5% contraction to a 0.8% increase.
The power distributor added 194,000 customers this year, bringing its total to 8.2 million, up 2% from a year earlier. Still, overall consumption fell compared with 2024, when extreme heat from the El Niño phenomenon boosted electricity use.
For 2026, Meralco expects energy sales to rise by about 3% or 1,700 megawatt-hours, driven by higher connections and the transition from El Niño to La Niña conditions.
“We’re hopeful that as weather conditions normalize — shifting from extreme temperatures of El Niño to La Niña — we’ll be able to recover some of the organic sales lost due to normalization of temperature,” Mr. Geluz said. He added that the repurposing of spaces vacated by Philippine offshore gaming operators (POGO) into new offices could also support energy sales in 2026.
For the nine months ended September, Meralco’s energy sales slipped 0.4% to 40,719 gigawatt-hours as prolonged rains dampened residential and commercial demand. Despite the decline, its distribution business remained the largest contributor to core net income, which climbed 14% to P40 billion.
Meralco Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said the company is on track to meet its P50-billion profit target this year, citing steady performance from its core distribution and power generation businesses.
Meralco’s controlling stakeholder, Beacon Electric Asset Holdings, Inc., is partly owned by PLDT, Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera
