ACEN’s New England solar farm to be operational next year

MANILA, Philippines — ACEN Corp.’s New England solar farm, the first of its renewable energy projects lined up in Australia, is on track to be operational by next year.

The New England solar farm located in Uralla in New South Wales is a 720-megawatt (MW) development.

A battery energy storage system (BESS) capable of dispatching energy to the grid at times of high energy demand is also being constructed as part of the development.

The project is set to be Australia’s largest hybrid solar and battery energy storage facility once completed.

It will produce around 1.8 million megawatt hours of clean electricity each year, enough to power about 250,000 New South Wales homes.

ACEN Australia is the platform representing the company’s renewable energy assets in Australia.

It includes several solar, wind, battery, pumped hydro and energy storage projects across New South Wales, Tasmania, Victoria and South Australia in development and construction.

“The New England Solar farm, the first of these projects, is expected to be in operation by 2023,” ACEN said.

ACEN Australia recently executed a facility agreement for up to A$140-million green long-term loan facility.

This is the second loan facility following the signing of an A$100-million facility with DBS Bank to support the ACEN Australia development portfolio.

ACEN said that as part of the company’s strategic aspiration to grow its renewables capacity to 20 gigawatts (GW) by 2030, the green long-term loan facility with MUFG Bank is part of its goal to raise over A$600 million to support the development of its projects in Australia.

MUFG  Bank is the sole arranger and green loan coordinator for the green long-term loan facility that will provide capital financing for ACEN’s eligible green assets in Australia.

“MUFG has been steadfast in leveraging its unrivalled global network and its expertise in financing the renewable energy sector. ACEN’s aspiration towards becoming a leading renewable energy provider in Asia is aligned with MUFG’s sustainability mission, and we are privileged to partner with the company in its commitment towards building a sustainable future,” MUFG Bank’s global head of subsidiary banking Manoj Bhatia said.

ACEN, the Ayala Group’s listed energy platform, seeks to grow its renewables capacity to 20 GW by 2030.

The company currently has 18 GW of pipeline across the region, which will help with the achievement of the company’s 2030 goals.