Ayala unit inks jv for wind projects

MANILA, Philippines - AC Energy Holdings, Inc. (ACEHI), a wholly owned subsidiary of conglomerate Ayala Corp. has signed a joint venture agreement with partners for the development of wind projects in Ilocos Norte.

Ayala Corp. said ACEHI signed a framework agreement and shareholders’ agreement with UPC Philippines Wind Holdco I B.V., a wholly owned company of UPC Renewables Partners (UPC) and the Philippine Investment Alliance for Infrastructure (PINAI) fund to develop over 200 megawatts of wind projects through the Northern Luzon UPC Asia Corp. (NLUPC) as their joint venture company.

The PINAI is composed of the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS), the state-owned pension fund for state workers; APG and Macquarie Infrastructure Holdings (Philippines) Pte. Limited.

“An initial equity investment has been agreed for the first 81-MW project with an investment value of approximately $220 million with ACEHI funding 64 percent of equity, PINAI 32 percent and UPC 4 percent,” Ayala Corp. announced over the weekend.

The Department of Energy (DOE) has already issued a declaration of commerciality for the 81-MW project last month.

Accordingly, NLUPC has signed the Turbine Supply, Installation and Service Availability Agreements with Siemens Wind Power A/S and Siemens Inc. and has issued the Notice to Proceed.

Based on the plan, proponents aim to connect the initial phase of the 81 MW plant to the grid by June 2014.

“The project will grow ACEHI’s wind farm portfolio in the Philippines, building on its current 50 percent ownership of NorthWind Power Development Corporation which already operates a 33 MW wind farm in Bangui, Ilocos Norte,” Ayala Corp. said.

Over the past two years, ACEHI has established a robust pipeline of power assets and has committed over $300 million of equity in conventional and renewable energy technologies, the conglomerate added.

UPC, meanwhile, has nearly 20 years of experience in developing, financing, constructing, owning and operating wind farms in Europe, USA and Asia with gross generating capacities of approximately 2,000MW.

With its experience, UPC continues to have a significant wind project development pipeline globally.

PINAI, managed by Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA),  is a P26-billion fund dedicated to equity investment in Philippine infrastructure assets.

MIRA manages more than $100 billion worth of infrastructure assets globally, including more than 16.7GW of power generation assets.

Aside from GSIS, PINAI’s investors also include Dutch pension fund asset manager APG, the Asian Development Bank and Macquarie Group.