Metro Pacific Investments Corporation reported a 23 percent hike in consolidated core net income to P9.5 billion for the first nine months of 2021 from P7.7 billion in the same period last year.

In a press briefing, MPIC President and CEO Jose Ma. K. Lim said “this substantial improvement from the 13 percent growth in the first half of the year was largely driven by improved traffic on its toll roads and higher volume of electricity sold by Manila Electric Company (Meralco).

Core net income for the third quarter rose 44 percent to P3.5 billion compared with the same period in 2020 and is at par with the second quarter of 2021.

This acceleration of growth reflects an improvement in performance notwithstanding the continued imposition of varying levels of quarantine across the country to contain the COVID-19 pandemic and was partially augmented by the impact of the Corporate Recovery and Tax Incentives for Enterprises (CREATE) Law which lowered corporate income tax rates from 30% to 25 percent.

Consolidated attributable reported net income attributable rose 147 percent to P12.4 billion following the gain recognized from the sale of Global Business Power (GBP) and Don Muang Tollways (DMT).

MPIC’s third quarter earnings rose as mobility restrictions continued to be eased and the ongoing vaccination program enabled more industries to re-open.

Meralco’s core net income increased 30 percent driven by energy sales growth and significantly 
higher contribution from its different business units and subsidiaries.

Maynilad Water Services Inc.’s core net income increased 4 percent due to lower taxes 
resulting from the CREATE Law while Metro Pacific Tollways Corporation’s core net income grew 17 percent on the back of 
generally higher traffic on its toll roads.

“The steady pace of growth that we are seeing across our core businesses has been very encouraging. We anticipate these trends to continue now that more commercial establishments are able to re-open with the relaxation of mobility restrictions,” said Lim.

He noted that, “Economic activity has historically peaked during the holiday season and so we hope to end the year on a much more positive disposition compared to last year.”

"With our robust expansion pipeline and the successive resolutions of our various regulatory hurdles, MPIC is well-positioned to unlock further value from its portfolio moving forward,” Lim added.

MPIC Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan said “2022 should be a better year for our Company with prospects of economic recovery...As we look forward to 2022, we draw our attention to other essential priorities, foremost of which are innovation and digital transformation,”

“We have been laying the groundwork across our core businesses with Meralco implementing digital solutions to address customer needs, Maynilad using the most advanced leak detection technologies, and MPTC inaugurating its digital mobility solutions. We intend to further explore opportunities in the digital space especially those that will make our operations and facilities even more efficient,” he said.