ACEN Corp., the listed energy platform of the Ayala Group, is looking at spending at least P70 billion on its projects next year. The company said the investment may even go “above P80 billion depending on project timing and other factors.” The figures were higher than the estimated P50 billion in capital expenditures for full year 2024. Article continues after this advertisementACEN, which also has a presence in foreign markets like the United States, Australia and Vietnam, has been accelerating its renewable power generating capacity buildup. FEATURED STORIES BUSINESS BIZ BUZZ: RE leader BUSINESS BSP to release less than 100M pieces each of new notes BUSINESS Personal finance lessons from Warren Buffett’s latest letterCurrently, the firm has a global generation portfolio of 6,800 megawatts (MW)—with 45 percent of this already operating, 34 percent under construction and the remaining committed, or have been green-lighted by the company’s board. With such amounts of investment, ACEN is bullish about hitting its target of 20,000 MW of renewable capacity by 2030. Article continues after this advertisementAt a recent briefing with reporters, its president and CEO Eric Francia bared that its unit ACEN Australia secured a contract to build a 900-MW wind park in Australia, dubbed the “Valley of the Winds.” Article continues after this advertisementACEN also said expanding the project to include a battery energy storage system is on the table. Article continues after this advertisementOnce operational by 2030, about 500,000 homes can benefit from the wind power plant, according to ACEN. The group did not disclose how much it plans to spend on the project. Article continues after this advertisement“The Valley of the Winds Project is still subject to a final investment decision, which will be made at the appropriate time,” it said in a disclosure on Friday. For the first nine months of 2024, ACEN saw a 24-percent jump in its profit, hitting P8.14 billion. In the third quarter alone, the company realized gains amounting to P1 billion from Ayala Land’s acquisition of its Zambales property. To recall, at the time the contract was terminated last August—four years after it was awarded—AllCard delivered 49.9 percent of its commitment to supply raw materials for the production of 116 million blank cards. Core attributable earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization also surged by 30 percent to P14.3 billion. Subscribe to our daily newsletter The company attributed this strong financial performance to new plants it activated during the period. INQgoplay READ NEXT Exporters temper 2024 earnings goal Restaurants seen to regain prepandemic vibrancy next year EDITORS' PICK DSWD eyes adding 1.2M poor households to 4Ps Phivolcs warns series of quakes off Ilocos Sur can trigger tsunami Groups buck bill on 99-yr land lease to foreigners Restaurants seen to regain prepandemic vibrancy next year Philippines stuns Indonesia, advances to Asean Cup semifinals Pope Francis reprimands Vatican staff for gossiping MOST READ Comelec warns candidates vs election scammers BFAR plane tells Chinese Navy: ‘Review your chart!’ SC gets Bulacan land for judiciary complex Romina no longer affecting Kalayaan Islands; wind signals lifted Follow @FMangosingINQ on Twitter --> View comments |