ACEN offloads 49% stake in another India wind asset

MANILA, Philippines — ACEN Corp. of the Zobel family is further unlocking value from its India wind portfolio through another strategic stake sale with Dutch firm Diamond India Renewables One B.V. (DIRO).

In a filing with the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) yesterday, ACEN said it would sell to DIRO up to a 49-percent stake in Avana Renewables Pte. Ltd., which is developing a 20-megawatt (MW) wind project in Karnataka, India.

A securities subscription and purchase agreement between ACEN subsidiary Unlimited Renewables Holdings B.V. (URH) and DIRO was executed on Aug. 17.

URH also signed a shareholders’ agreement with the Netherlands-based investor and UPC Renewables India Management Pte. Ltd., a subsidiary of Singapore’s UPC Renewables.

The transaction is expected to close in stages, with DIRO initially acquiring a 10-percent voting interest in Avana.

The deal is subject to the fulfillment of customary closing conditions and other contractual requirements.

The latest move continues ACEN’s strategy of reducing its equity interests in select renewable power projects under construction in India.

Earlier, the company sold up to 49 percent stakes in the 100-MW Diyos wind project in Karnataka and the 250-MW Tejorupa solar farm in Rajasthan to DIRO.

Despite the decline in its Indian capacity, ACEN saw Philippine operations and other key overseas markets make significant contributions during the first half.

As a result, the company’s earnings surged by 411 percent to P3.9 billion during the period from P763 million a year earlier.

Revenues jumped by 47 percent to P23.13 billion from P15.72 billion, propelled by the continued growth of the retail electricity business and contributions from newly operational assets.

“We expect to continue to grow, but we will be very, very disciplined about the projects that we bring into the portfolio,” ACEN chief finance officer and chief strategy officer Jonathan Back told PSE STAR Investor Day 2026.

Back said the company sees an opportunity to capitalize on growing interest in indigenous renewable sources such as solar power as the ongoing Middle East conflict continues to roil global energy markets.

As of end-June, ACEN’s total attributable capacity reached about 7.5 gigawatts.