With more projects in pipeline, AboitizPower bullish on growth

MANILA, Philippines — Aboitiz Corp. is optimistic about achieving its growth targets, with the expectation that its new energy projects will contribute to the Philippine grid in the near term.

“We are on track to deliver our growth aspirations, and obviously if there are opportunities to build more renewable energy – such as wind for example – that’s something that we’re always looking to do,”

AboitizPower chief financial officer Juan Alejandro Aboitiz said in a television interview.

Aboitiz said the company has already started delivering energy to the grid from its 94-megawatt (MW) peak Cayanga solar plant in Pangasinan.

For next year, AboitizPower expects its 159-MW Laoag solar plant to start delivering to the grid, he said.

“We have a 24-megawatt battery energy storage project in Magat together with our partner Scatec that we also expect to start delivering in 2024,” Aboitiz said.

AboitizPower has so far identified close to 1,000 MW of renewable energy projects. These form part of its decarbonization strategy, in which the company aims to double its net attributable sellable capacity to 9,200 MW – split 50:50 between renewable energy and thermal capacities – over the next decade.

The company is likewise keeping a close eye on liquified natural gas as a transition fuel and the feasibility of adopting nuclear technologies as part of a solution to achieve decarbonization goals.

“We’re approaching the transition in a very balanced way. Philippine energy demand continues to grow with the economy every year. As we continue to build renewable energy, we also have to ensure that there is sufficient baseload capacity,” Aboitiz said.

“In order to have a just and equitable transition, the entire energy system has to evolve. The transmission networks have to be able to manage more variability in the grid because of all of the renewable energy we are building,” he said.

Aboitiz said the company’s profitable nine-month performance gives AboitizPower “a lot of confidence as we head into 2024 and beyond.”

“We feel that we are in a good position to support the grid by keeping the availability of our power plants high and our costs down because we want to ensure that we’re minimizing the impact on the end-consumer as much as possible,” he said.

AboitizPower plans to spend about P50 billion in capital expenditures next year to fuel its growth and bolster its portfolio, primarily through more renewable energy projects.