PRESS RELEASE

Global construction and engineering firm ib vogt and ACEN, the listed power arm of the Ayala Group, are setting up a platform to fund the construction and operation of large-scale solar power plants throughout Asia with an initial equity infusion of $200 million (P10 billion).

In a stock exchange report on Monday, ACEN said the joint venture partners will focus on late-stage, shovel-ready projects in Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Laos, Bangladesh and other countries in the region.

Majority of projects will stem from ib vogt’s Asia development pipeline of more than 5,000 megawatts (MW) with initial projects planned to go into construction during 2022. The platform will also be open to acquiring late-stage projects from local and regional developers.

The venture targets a minimum operational capacity of 1,000 MW over the coming years with the potential for further extension.

Under the terms of the deal, ACEN expects to invest up to $200 million in equity investment in addition to debt funding to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in Asia.

According to Anton Milner, CEO of ib vogt, the partnership will complement its global strategy of developing a diversified portfolio of high-quality independent power producer (IPP) assets.

Meanwhile, Patrice Clausse, President and COO of ACEN International, cited ib vogt’s proven track record of developing solar projects across Europe, Asia and North Africa.

Citicore, ACEN tie-up

In a separate disclosure, Citicore said the Arayat-Mexico solar farm, its joint venture with ACEN, reached its full capacity last 23 March. It is expected to add much-needed capacity to the grid in time for the demand surge during the summer season.

“As we prepare to infuse this new asset into CREIT to grow its renewable energy asset portfolio in the coming months, our construction team is ready to break ground on Phase 2 by next month which will increase the total plant capacity to 116 MW upon completion hopefully before the end of the year,” Citicore CEO Oliver Tan said.

After its successful energization, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines will be conducting its own set of testing for grid compliance, which is expected to be completed by the second week of April.

“The on-time energization of this project further demonstrated Citicore’s solid track record in greenfield development to Engineering, Procurement, and Construction to Plant Operations and Maintenance, a vertically integrated business model like no other,” Tan noted.

Once fully operational, the 72 MW solar farm will produce 105 GWh of renewable energy annually, enough to power 45,000 households while avoiding approximately 72,000 MT of CO2 emissions annually. The solar project has a potential expansion of up to 116 MW.