Posted on October 27, 2011 10:55:24 PM
CUSTOMERS of distribution utility Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) favor prepaid electricity as it is easier to manage the household budget, the company said in a statement yesterday.
“Prepaid and buying ‘tingi’ or sachet is ingrained in
the Filipino lifestyle. Many wage earners receive daily or weekly pay,
so they would prefer that their expenses -- from mobile to Internet and
yes, to electricity -- be also on a ‘tingi’ basis,” said Alfredo S. Panlilio, Meralco senior vice-president for Customer Retail Services, in the statement.
Mr. Panlilio added: “This enables [consumers] to bridge the timing of their cash outflows. If this can be made possible, they will avoid the monthly experience of having to pay a one-time big-time amount.”
Meralco based its findings on a consumer analysis research it conducted with General Electric. The survey was done in the second half of this year and had more than 400 respondents.
The survey also showed prepaid electricity could be used as a budgeting tool that will teach household members to save and share expenses.
The power distributor is set to pilot prepaid metering early next year, and will roll out the system on a wide scale later that year.
To avail of the service, Meralco customers will provide vendors a subscriber information number. Vendors will then top up electricity credits through text messaging.
Consumers will be informed through texts as well if the credits have been loaded or if it has already run out. The distributor earlier said it plans to pilot-test smart meters, or meters that work with the prepaid electricity system.
Mr. Panlilio said the study produced “valuable insights about how customers view prepaid electricity and this will guide Meralco in designing the service.”
“We are working hard to be able to satisfy customer needs and we will continue to invest in innovations and customer solution initiatives to make life easier for all Meralco customers,” said Mr. Panlilio.
Meralco’s reported net income rose 26% to P6.09 billion in the first half of the year, from P4.9 billion in the same period last year.
In 2009, Meralco saw a change in management with Manuel V. Pangilinan of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) took over as chief executive of the utility.
Metro Pacific is the local arm of Hong Kong’s First Pacific Co. Ltd., which partly owns the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT).
Mediaquest Holdings, Inc., a unit of the Beneficial Trust Fund of PLDT, has a minority stake in BusinessWorld. -- Emilia Narni J. David
http://bit.ly/ua9gXo
Mr. Panlilio added: “This enables [consumers] to bridge the timing of their cash outflows. If this can be made possible, they will avoid the monthly experience of having to pay a one-time big-time amount.”
Meralco based its findings on a consumer analysis research it conducted with General Electric. The survey was done in the second half of this year and had more than 400 respondents.
The survey also showed prepaid electricity could be used as a budgeting tool that will teach household members to save and share expenses.
The power distributor is set to pilot prepaid metering early next year, and will roll out the system on a wide scale later that year.
To avail of the service, Meralco customers will provide vendors a subscriber information number. Vendors will then top up electricity credits through text messaging.
Consumers will be informed through texts as well if the credits have been loaded or if it has already run out. The distributor earlier said it plans to pilot-test smart meters, or meters that work with the prepaid electricity system.
Mr. Panlilio said the study produced “valuable insights about how customers view prepaid electricity and this will guide Meralco in designing the service.”
“We are working hard to be able to satisfy customer needs and we will continue to invest in innovations and customer solution initiatives to make life easier for all Meralco customers,” said Mr. Panlilio.
Meralco’s reported net income rose 26% to P6.09 billion in the first half of the year, from P4.9 billion in the same period last year.
In 2009, Meralco saw a change in management with Manuel V. Pangilinan of Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC) took over as chief executive of the utility.
Metro Pacific is the local arm of Hong Kong’s First Pacific Co. Ltd., which partly owns the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT).
Mediaquest Holdings, Inc., a unit of the Beneficial Trust Fund of PLDT, has a minority stake in BusinessWorld. -- Emilia Narni J. David
http://bit.ly/ua9gXo
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