Ayala unit targets 1,000-MW power capacity by 2016

MANILA, Philippines - AC Energy Holdings Inc., the power generation company of the Ayala Group, is targeting to put up 1,000 megawatts in capacity by 2016.

In a statement, the company said it is on track to reaching this goal after recently securing financing for the phased construction of a 4x135-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Kauswagan, Lanao del Norte in Mindanao.

This brings AC Energy’s attributable capacity to over 700 MW, the company said.

GN Power Kauswagan Ltd. Co., a limited partnership among AC Energy, the Philippine Investment Alliance for Infrastructure (PINAI) and Power Partners Ltd. Co. are developing the power plant, which is expected to start in early 2015 and will be operational by 2017.

Aside from the Mindanao plant, AC Energy is also involved in the development of a 2x600-megawatt power plant in Bataan situated beside the existing GN Power Mariveles plant.

The Mariveles plant is 17 percent owned by AC Energy, and is aiming to achieve financial close this year.

Similarly, AC Energy has a joint venture with Trans-Asia Oil and Development Corp., the South Luzon Thermal Energy Corp. (SLTEC), which is building a 2x135-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Calaca, Batangas.

The first unit is scheduled to start commercial operations by the first quarter of 2015 while the second unit, which is still under construction, is expected to be completed by the end of the year.

For its renewable energy projects, AC Energy has finished several wind farm projects last year.

The 19 MW expansion of Northwind Power Development Corp. in Bangui, Ilocos Norte for instance, reached completion in October 2014 and has since been successfully delivering power to the Luzon grid.

The expansion has brought Northwind’s total capacity to 52 MW.

AC Energy, through its affiliate North Luzon Renewable Energy Corp. (NLREC), also completed its 81-MW wind farm in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte last November.

Combined, Northwind and NLREC put Ayala’s total wind power capacity at 133 MW.

AC Energy president and chief executive officer Eric Francia said the projects would help augment the looming power supply shortage this year.

“The completion of these projects is quite timely given the anticipated tightness in power supply this year. We hope these power generation assets will help augment the country’s power requirements,” he said.

In the past three years, the Ayala Group has committed over $700 million to build much needed baseload capacity and to develop renewable energy sources, he said.

“We continue to work on a pipeline of power projects together with our partners to meet our goal of assembling over 1,000 MW in attributable generating capacity over the next few years,” he said.