ACEN income up 34% to P2.7 billion

MANILA, Philippines — Energy platform ACEN Corp. has reported a 34-percent jump in consolidated net income to P2.7 billion in the first quarter fro P2 billion in the same quarter last year.

The Ayala-led listed company also reported an eight-percent increase in revenues for its Philippine and Australian operations to P9.9 billion from January to March versus last year’s P9.1 billion.

“The company’s solid first quarter result reflects the steady realization of our long term strategy. We will continue to build on this momentum as we focus on excellence in execution,” ACEN president and CEO Eric Francia said.

The strong performance was attributed to the 49-percent increase in renewable energy output to 1,590 gigawatt hours (GWh), following ACEN’s continued increase of new operating renewables capacity and a strengthened net merchant selling position at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market in the country.

The energy firm also cited contributions of newly operating solar and wind farms, especially in the Philippines and Australia.

According to ACEN, the year-on-year gains were offset by lower wind output in Vietnam and North Luzon, the sell-down of a stake in Salak & Darajat Geothermal in Indonesia in the third quarter of 2023 and lower WESM prices in the Philippines.

Meanwhile, core attributable earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) increased by 32 percent to P5.3 billion, including non-consolidated operating projects.

As of the first quarter, ACEN achieved around 4.8 GW in renewable capacity. Including over one GW of signed agreements and won competitive tenders, ACEN has effectively surpassed its five GW renewable energy capacity target by 2025.

Moreover, total attributable output across ACEN’s facilities worldwide surged by 49 percent to 1,580 GWh due to production from its newly operational plants.

ACEN’s Philippine and international plants delivered 570 GWh and 1,010 GWh, respectively.

The Philippine operations increased due to the commissioning of new solar and wind farms. These include the 385 megawatts (MW) Phases 1 and 2 of SanMar Solar in San Marcelino, the 160 MW Pagudpud Wind in Ilocos Norte, the 133 MW Cagayan North Solar in Cagayan and Phase 2 of the 116 MW Arayat-Mexico Solar in Pampanga.