Meralco eyes P4-B loans

Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the country’s largest power distributor, is eyeing to borrow up to P4 billion by June this year to refinance maturing obligations, a ranking ocial said.

In an interview, Meralco president Oscar Reyes said the company is in talks with local banks for the loan. “More or less, it’s P3 to P4 billion. We’re in the process of talking with local banks for this,” Reyes said.

He said Meralco would use proceeds of the loan to refinance maturing loans, which were earlier used to fund the power firm’s capital expenditures.

Meralco is setting aside P13 billion for this year to finance its capital expenditures, higher than last year’s P11 billion.

Reyes said the bulk of the capex would be used to upgrade Meralco’s current system with a smart grid.

Meralco ocials are optimistic that the business environment would be better this year, along with the improving economy.

Meralco chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan has said that “as a whole 2013 will be better for the company,” on the back of better economic prospects.

He said the company would pursue new projects to further boost its objective of providing a more ecient power distribution system to its customers while sustaining profits.

Pangilinan also said that Meralco likely met its net income target of P16 billion for 2012.

In January to September 2012, Meralco’s core net income grew by eight percent to P12.898 billion from P11.949 billion a year ago.

The reported net income for the first nine months of 2012 also grew to P13.6 billion, 37 percent higher than in the same period a year ago.

Revenues during the nine-month period, meanwhile, stood at P214.7 billion, up by 14 percent from P189.1 billion in the same period in 2011.