ACEN, the listed energy platform of the Ayala Group, will increase its power generation capacity with the development of a new 300-megawatt solar farm, called Palauig 2 Solar, in Zambales at a cost of P16 billion.
Construction of the new solar unit, which is located close to ACEN’s 63MW Palauig 1 solar farm, has already started and will include a 1,200MW transmission line.
The solar panels, supplied by module manufacturer Seraphim, has a high-efficiency rating of 540 Megawatts-peak, the rated power out of the solar farm under ideal condition.
Palauig 2 Solar is expected to produce over 450 gigaWatthours of clean energy per year, and together with Palauig 1 Solar’s 90 GWh output, can sustainably power the equivalent of around 139,000 homes and avoid 350,000 tons of carbon emissions annually.
ACEN has also created around 2,200 green energy jobs in Zambales since the start of the development of Palauig 1 Solar in 2020, helping stir the local economy and improve national prosperity as the country gears up for a post pandemic era.
Ayala Group’s investments in clean sources of energy dovetails with the government’s goal of generating 35 percent of the country’s energy requirements from renewable sources by 2030.
“Palauig 2 Solar is the first of several new plants to commence with major construction works this year, and the need to sustain this accelerated pace towards the exponential growth of the renewables space is on top of our agenda.” Jose Maria Zabaleta, chief development officer of ACEN, said.
