AC Energy, Marubeni unit team up for 150-MW plant

MANILA, Philippines — AC Energy Philippines Inc. has partnered with a unit of Marubeni Corp.of Japan to develop and operate a 150-megawatt (MW) diesel modular generator set power plant in Pililia, Rizal.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange yesterday, AC Energy Philippines, said its wholly, owned unit ACE Endevor Inc. has signed a shareholders’ agreement with Axia Power Holdings Philippines Corp.

The plant is expected to be operational in the first quarter of 2021.

Under the deal, Axia will acquire 50 percent of the shares and 50 percent of the economic rights in Ingrid Power Holdings Inc., the special purpose vehicle of the diesel plant.

In turn, AC Energy Philippines will hold 50 percent shares and 45 percent of the economic rights, with Endevor having a five percent share of the economic rights in the said project.

The joint venture is subject to the approval of the Philippine Competition Commission.

Once completed, the Ingrid diesel project will supply peaking and reserve power to the Luzon grid.

AC Energy president and chief executive officer Eric Francia said the peaking plant would be able to complement the intermittent supply being provided by renewable energy projects once RE policies, such as the Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) are in place.

A provision of Renewable Energy Act of 2008, RPS mandates power industry players to produce and source a certain percentage of electricity from RE sources such as biomass, waste-to-energy technology, wind energy, solar energy, run-of-river hydroelectric power systems, impounding hydroelectric power systems, ocean energy, and geothermal energy.

Last March, AC Energy –the power generation arm of Ayala Corp. – consolidated its international and Philippine platforms under subsidiary AC Energy Philippines to solidify the Ayala Group’s position in the power sector, with more clean power projects being eyed in the country.

The consolidation will be done through the issuance of additional primary shares of ACEPH in favor AC Energy.

As of January this year, the AC Energy Philippines had infused P570 million into Ingrid to fund the Ingrid project.

AC Energy aims to exceed five gigawatts of attributable capacity and generate at least 50 percent of energy output from renewables by 2025.