ACEN Corp., the energy platform of the Ayala group, said Thursday first-half net income nearly doubled to P4.2 billion, bolstered by the strong performance of North Wind—its wind farm in Ilocos—and higher operating capacity with the testing and commissioning of new projects.
Consolidated revenue in the first half rose 28 percent to P20.5 billion. The strong performance, it said, was accompanied by a rise in overhead, as it ramped up manpower in support of the acceleration of its renewables expansion.
Total attributable renewables output showed double-digit growth, rising 21 percent to 2,052 gigawatt-hours in the first half, without the impact of the Visayas curtailment experienced in the previous year.
Renewables generation from Philippine operations increased 30 percent to 568 GWh, on the back of a strong wind regime, and with the commissioning of the 160-megawatt Pagudpud wind farm in Ilocos Norte, as well as of the 44 MW-direct current second phase of the Arayat-Mexico Solar farm in Pampanga.
ACEN’s International portfolio generated 1,483 GWh, a 17 percent increase on strong wind resources in Vietnam, alongside improved capacity factors in Indonesia, and the ramp-up of commissioning offtake for the 521 MWdc first phase of New England Solar in New South Wales, Australia.
“We’ve made considerable progress with the continued ramp-up of our projects, helping provide much-needed supply to the Philippines and across the region. This has transitioned us to a net selling position in the Philippine spot market and strengthened our financial performance,” said Eric Francia, ACEN president and chief executive officer.
Consolidated assets rose 4 percent to P242.7 billion, while long-term investments grew 19 percent to P130.7 billion as the company continued to scale up its renewables portfolio, with 2.7 GW currently under construction.
“We continue to expand our funding sources and optimize ACEN’s capital structure, while keeping track of our leverage ratios, as we aggressively pursue new investments in line with our growth aspirations,” said Cora Dizon, ACEN chief financial officer.
ACEN continues to move toward its target of achieving 20 GW in attributable renewables capacity by 2030.
Currently, the company has a diversified portfolio of 4.3 GW in renewable energy, both operational and under construction, with 1.6 GW in the Philippines, 1.0 GW in Australia, 0.9 GW in Vietnam and Lao People’s Democratic Republic, 0.5 GW in India, and 0.3 GW across Indonesia and other markets.
