Meralco’s first-half core net income rose 10% to P25.5 billion

Manila Electric Co (Meralco) on Monday reported a 10-percent increase in its core net income in the first half of 2025 to P25.5 billion from P23.2 billion in the same period last year.

The distribution business contributed the largest share, accounting for 54 percent, or P13.7 billion, of the core net income.

Meralco forecasts its consolidated core net income (CCNI) to reach P50 billion for 2025, largely driven by the power generation business.

“Meralco delivered strong results in the first half of the year, fueled by the solid performance of our core distribution business and accelerating momentum of the generation business,” Meralco chairman and chief executive Manuel Pangilinan said in a briefing Monday.

“While energy sales volume growth has been lower than anticipated, we remain on track to meet our overall targets as power generation is expected to deliver higher-than-expected performance, offsetting the anticipated slower demand growth,” Pangilinan said, expecting 2025 full-year CCNI to grow by low double digits over 2024.

The power generation business increased its contribution to 37 percent of CCNI, or P9.4 billion, up from 27 percent in 2024.

Meralco PowerGen Corp. (MGEN) saw a 52-percent increase in its CCNI contribution by the end of the first semester, boosted by higher revenues from its participation in the reserve market, investment in Chromite Gas Holdings Inc, the commissioning of a new 100-megawatt (MW) plant in Singapore, and improved plant availability across its portfolio.

With an increase in net saleable capacity to 5,068 MW in the Philippines and Singapore from 2,404 MW last year, MGEN delivered 12,644 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of energy in the six-month period, a 66 percent year-on-year increase.

“MGEN’s solid performance in the first half of 2025 reflects the strength and dynamism of our generation portfolio,” MGEN president and chief executive Emmanuel Rubio said.

“From thermal and LNG to renewables and battery storage, we are scaling up investments that push our growth and profitability forward, ultimately delivering greater value to our stakeholders,” said Rubio.

Meanwhile, the retail electricity supply (RES) and non-electricity businesses collectively contributed P2.4 billion, or 9 percent of the CCNI.

Consolidated reported net income increased 5 percent to P23.6 billion from P22.4 billion.

Given the strong financial performance, Meralco’s board approved an interim cash dividend of P11.328 per share to all shareholders of record as of Aug. 27, 2025, payable on Sept. 22, 2025.

This represents 50 percent of Meralco’s core earnings per share (EPS). The total interim cash dividend payable will amount to P12.8 billion.

Consolidated distribution utility (DU) energy sales, primarily from Meralco and Clark Electric Distribution Corp, ended the semester at 27,091 GWh, up less than 1 percent from 26,954 GWh in the same period last year.

The commercial segment, accounting for 37 percent of total sales, recorded 10,102 GWh in energy sales, up from 10,068 GWh last year.

This was driven by sustained expansion in malls and wholesale supermarkets and the scaling of cafés and quick-service restaurants, which offset the impact of lower real estate occupancy rates and sluggish tourist hotel arrivals.

The residential segment, contributing 36 percent of total sales, booked 9,779 GWh, up from 9,715 GWh, due to the steady growth of newly energized accounts.

The industrial segment held 26 percent of the sales mix at 7,137 GWh, up from 7,097 GWh in energy sales in the first half of 2024. This was driven by robust demand for semiconductors and cement and a resurgence in domestic steel production, which helped cushion the impact of contracted consumption in the food and beverage manufacturing sector.

Consolidated customer count reached 8.1 million during the period, a 3-percent increase from 7.9 million in the same period a year ago.