Aboitiz shines in Jakarta

Notes on the beat

JAKARTA — With the Philippines’ power market liberalized, much of the responsibility for securing the energy future rests with the private sector.

That role is becoming even more critical as the Philippines races to add renewable power, meet growing electricity demand and turn its energy transition from policy targets into projects on the ground.

One company helping drive this transition is Aboitiz Renewables Inc., the renewable energy arm of Aboitiz Power Corp.

And its efforts have not gone unnoticed in the region.

Aboitiz Renewables was named Independent Power Producer of the Year at the Enlit Asia Power and Energy Awards 2026 here in Indonesia’s capital.

The company was cited for its project completions, merger and acquisition activities and industry leadership in advancing renewable energy (RE) development across the Philippines.

It emerged ahead of two other finalists in the category – Malaysia’s Malakoff Corp. Berhad and Singapore’s Levanta Renewables.

“We are deeply grateful for this recognition, but the real credit goes to our team members. It is their passion, innovative spirit and responsible and reliable project execution that make this possible,” Aboitiz Renewables president Jimmy Villaroman said.

Aboitiz Renewables corporate communications head Meg Racho and VP for project development – solar Rolando Vergara accepted the award on behalf of the company.

Over the past four years, Aboitiz Renewables has added 846 megawatts (MW) of new capacity to the grid, comprising six solar farms, an RE-integrated battery storage and a geothermal binary plant.

It further expanded its portfolio in February with the P36.3-billion acquisition of the 797-MW Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan hydropower complex in Laguna after winning the government auction.

These projects have more than doubled the company’s attributable capacity to over two gigawatts today from just 900 MW in 2022.

“True excellence is an ongoing process, and we are privileged to support the Philippines’ clean energy transition,” Villaroman said.

Aboitiz Renewables has also advanced four battery energy storage projects into the construction phase and is on track to bring its first wind project online by the end of the year.

Currently, the company operates 45 RE facilities nationwide, with a development pipeline of more than 1,000 MW across solar, hydro and wind projects.

Across Southeast Asia, the energy sector is grappling with the challenge of scaling up renewables while keeping electricity affordable and ensuring reliable power as demand continues to grow.

This energy trilemma has been at the heart of discussions at this year’s Enlit Asia, the premier annual platform for the ASEAN power sector.

For the Philippines, the challenge is particularly urgent. The country aims to increase the share of renewables in the power mix to 35 percent by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040 from 25 percent today.

With only a few years left to hit the target, whether the country gets there remains uncertain.

What is clear is that the private sector is investing and building. The government’s task now is to create sound policies that can turn that momentum into the affordable electricity Filipinos need.