ACEN pushes for separate battery storage auction

MANILA, Philippines — Ayala-led  ACEN Corp. is advocating for a competitive bidding for standalone battery storage projects as the Philippines gears up for the entry of more renewable power capacity into the grid.

ACEN president and CEO Eric Francia said the government should consider holding an auction for battery storage capacity to support the development of variable renewable sources, particularly solar energy.

Many grid-connected projects, said Francia, are not generating a full output due to constraints in the country’s electrical superhighway.

In the case of solar projects, power is generated only when the sun is shining, resulting in overproduction during the day and capacity shortfall at night.

Francia said a government policy on standalone battery storage could be a game-changer, noting that the technology has the potential to mitigate grid constraints and production imbalances.

“If you have a standalone battery near a substation that is limited in terms of transmission capacity because of excess solar generation, you can absorb it (power) during the day and then release it at night,” he said.

A battery energy storage system (BESS) facility stores excess electricity generated during low-demand periods and supplies it back to the grid during peak demand, ensuring the stability and reliability of the transmission network.

For the fourth green energy auction round (GEA-4), however, the Department of Energy would only offer integrated renewable energy storage systems or IRESS – power projects with battery storage components.

GEA-4, which marks the first auction round to integrate ESS, includes 3,940 megawatts of ground-mounted solar, 48 MW of roof-mounted solar, 3,000 MW of floating solar and 2,390 MW of onshore wind.

Amid grid constraints, Francia expressed concern over these “high-capacity targets for pure solar.”

“The IRESS is a great technical format… but what do you do if there are already solar projects being built or operating on a standalone basis?” he asked.

“If there are six gigawatts (GW) being added to a grid that’s already constrained, I won’t be surprised if a good number of them are curtailed,” the executive said.

According to Francia, the ideal amount of storage capacity to complement each unit of solar capacity is around 30 to 40 percent.

This means that for every GW of solar installations, at least 300 to 400 MW should be devoted to batteries.

“In Australia, we’re already building a standalone battery storage. That’s not necessarily an IRESS, but (it’s located) beside our solar plant or near substation, which have a lot of solar generation capacity,” Francia said.

He was referring to the 400-MW-hour New England BESS in New South Wales, the construction of which is now in full swing.

Upon completion in 2026, the project is poised to become one of Australia’s largest co-located solar and battery storage facilities providing stored energy to the grid.

As the listed energy platform of the Ayala Group, ACEN has seven GW of global portfolio, consisting of operational, under-construction and committed projects.