With the growth in sales of the distribution utility (DU) during the first nine months of 2024, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) expects that its total number of customers will reach eight million by next month.

During a media briefing, Meralco reported that its total customer count reached 7.99 million by the end of September, a three percent increase from 7.77 million last year. 

Merco said this growth is attributed to the company’s ongoing efforts to provide power to more consumers within its service areas.

Additionally, Meralco posted a seven percent increase in energy sales volumes across four of its segments.

While its overall energy sales went up by 40,872 gigawatt-hour (Gwh), the residential segment retained its 10 percent growth from 13,363 Gwh to 14,758 Gwh. This was due to the steady power supply of new accounts and the higher per capita consumption observed after the pandemic. 

The residential category had a 36 percent share in the total energy sales mix during the nine-month period of 2024.

Despite challenges such as the exit of offshore gaming operations following President Ferdinand Marcos’ directive and the ongoing work-from-home arrangements, Meralco had an eight percent increase in its commercial sales, rising from 14,122 GWh last year to 15,621 GWh this year.

This was because real estate has experienced a spike in energy consumption due to surging office occupancy rates from mixed-use developments, while retail, restaurants, and hotels, anchored on new mall openings, are booming from the increased leisure activities.

Subsequently, the nine-month period poised an increase in the commercial segment, accounting for 37 percent of the total energy sales mix, which has been steady since last year. 

Industrial sales are also seeing recovery with a two percent increase from 10,570 GWh to 10,743 GWh. This was due to the rise in production lines from the plastics and food and beverage industries, especially with the ongoing academic year and holidays. 

Moreover, sales volumes in the industrial sector boosted with the help of the semiconductor and non-metallic sectors, but they were affected by the steel sector and the lower dispatch from embedded generators.

This prompted a 26 percent decline in Meralco’s total energy sales mix from January to September of this year.

Meralco assured that its 12-month moving average system loss remained below the indicative regulatory cap at 6.04 percent.

Ronnie L. Aperocho, Meralco executive vice president and chief operating officer, explained that the company has been anticipating the needs of its consumers and developing projects that would provide long-term benefits.

“With our customer count seen breaching the eight-million mark, we foresee the need to be even more aggressive in investing in grid modernization projects and operational efficiency through advanced metering infrastructure that will make our network more robust, more resilient, and more intelligent,” he said.

“Equally significant for Meralco is making sure that we are prepared to meet the supply needs of customers without unnecessarily exposing them to volatile energy prices. To this end, our efforts are centered on competitive biddings, which historically yielded the lowest rates that translate into savings for our millions of customers. While there are still a lot of things to be done, our customers can be assured that Meralco will remain proactive in working with the energy industry players, and the regulator, in promoting consumer welfare.”