MANILA Electric Co. (Meralco) on Tuesday said it is developing 1,000 megawatts of renewable energy projects in the next five to seven years.

In a statement, Meralco President and Chief Executive Officer Ray C. Espinosa said the expansion is in keeping with the company’s unwavering shift to renewable energy and the adoption of sustainable practices.

“Meralco is committed to developing large-scale renewable energy projects that can deliver competitive electricity for our customers, without any requirement for subsidy or support, while keeping environmental stewardship and sustainability as top priorities in our business,” Mr. Espinosa was quoted in a statement.

Subsidiary MGEN Renewable Energy, Inc. (MGreen) is working on several renewable energy projects, primarily solar, wind and run-of-river hydro.

The company aims to bring in additional supply to further the Philippines’ growth and help ensure availability of green and cost-competitive power supply in the coming years.

MGreen is a wholly owned subsidiary of Meralco PowerGen Corp.(MGen), which in turn is the power generation arm of Meralco.

“We are working on several renewable energy prospects and we recognize the significant reduction in the development cost, particularly for large-scale solar and wind over the past years. Notwithstanding the ongoing requirement for new reliable baseload generation to support the fast-growing Philippine economy, we believe that the time is right to focus on building our green energy capacity and we intend to be a key player in this expanding sector,” MGen President and CEO Rogelio L. Singson said in the statement.

“MGen, through MGreen, will continue working on the realization of our project opportunities, and will work in partnership with established developers to maximize our growth potential,” he added.

The listed distribution utility saw its core net income rose 14% to P5.6 billion in the first quarter, despite a “modest” 2% growth in energy sales volume.

Meralco earlier said its reported net profit, which includes one-time gains, went up 7% to P5.7 billion during the January to March period.

The company attributed its first- quarter performance to: “higher distribution revenue underpinned by the 2% growth in energy sales volume; the positive contribution from Clark Electric Distribution Corporation (CEDC), following the settlement in 2018 of an unexpected claim by the Clark Development Corporation over the distribution revenues earned by CEDC from 2014 – 2018; and turnaround operating results of the company’s Retail Electricity Supply units.”

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 interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Janina C. Lim

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