The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
By Luis Leoncio
Property developer 8990 Holdings Inc. will soon offer homeowners in its subdivisions in General Trias, Cavite, the option of prepaid electricity service through the Manila Electric Co. (Meralco).
The 8990 scheme for prepaid electricity in its housing development project would be the first of its kind in the country.
Bella Vista, which is under the Deca Homes brand of 8990 Holdings, will offer the service to the homeowners.
The distribution utility said in a statement that the two firms signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) on October 14.
Meralco explained it works with property developers to ensure reliable and dependable power with faster energization timelines.
For his part, Januario Jesus Atencio III, president and chief executive officer of 8990 Holdings Inc., said prepaid electricity “makes good business sense as the developers are not paying for the service deposit and meter costs.”
Meralco’s prepaid electricity will provide payment options to homeowners for managing their power consumption better, through budget-sized purchases of electricity by loading either P100, P200, P300, P500 or P1,000. The load has no expiration.
According to Meralco, consumers could monitor their power consumption and how much balance they have through text messages.
The distribution utility stressed it had waived the initial bill deposit for the service.
Meralco said customers who had run out of load could easily gain power back within 15 minutes of their re-loading. It added retailers are scattered in neighborhood stores.
The company also said analysts expect further growth in the real-estate development, amid the current housing boom, stressing that, due to the competition, developers have to provide innovations, incentives and value-added services.
This is the first transaction of Meralco with a property developer.
The program was launched in 2014. It was already installed in Taytay, Rizal, and San Juan.