AboitizPower eyes solar, wind projects in Vietnam

MANILA, Philippines — Aboitiz Power Corp. is zooming in on solar and wind projects in Vietnam for its overseas expansion to take advantage of the feed-in tariff (FIT) regime, its top official said yesterday.

The company continues its efforts to expand overseas, but its focus now is mainly on Vietnam, AboitizPower president and CEO Erramon Aboitiz told reporters.

It is currently evaluating “a few deals” in Vietnam’s renewable energy (RE) sector.

The projects being eyed, which have a capacity of 50 to 100 megawatts (MW), are already in the permitting stage and under construction to be able to meet the FIT deadline.

“We have to be ready and running by that time. Depending on what technology.  We have to be able to meet the 2021 timeline,” Aboitiz said.

The company hopes to acquire an RE project within 2020 if discussions with local developers progress.

“We are looking at several projects in advanced stages so hopefully we will be able to announce projects soon,” he said.

AboitizPower earlier said it was scouting for a partner for possible overseas investments in Indonesia, Vietnam and Myanmar.

Indonesia and Myanmar have the potential for several hundreds of megawatts of hydropower projects.

AboitizPower has already gotten a headstart in Indonesia after it partnered with SN Power and PT Energi Infranusantara to invest in PT Auriga Energi which will conduct the feasibility studies for the exploration and development of a potential 127-MW hydropower generation project along the Lariang River in Central Sulawesi, Indonesia.

In 2015, AboitizPower also looked at the potential of a greenfield geothermal exploration and development project of its wholly-owned Singapore-based subsidiary AboitizPower International Pte. Ltd. (AP Intl) in Ijen, East Java province. But it decided to exit the project in 2017.

By 2020, the company is targeting an energy capacity target of 4,000 MW. If any overseas project materializes, it will be on top of the 4,000 MW since the company is well off exceeding its target with the projects being completed at home.

AboitizPower has investments in various thermal and renewable power generating facilities with a total net sellable capacity of 3,350 MW with its partners. Its Cleanergy brand amounts to 1,272 MW, 39 percent of its total net sellable capacity.

Once it completes its ongoing projects, the company will have a capacity of 4,500 MW.

AboitizPower also owns distribution utilities that operate in high-growth areas in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao, including the second and third largest private utilities in the country.