ACEN pours P1 billion into RE site expansion

MANILA, Philippines — ACEN Corp. of the Zobel family has injected an additional P1 billion into a subsidiary responsible for securing new strategic sites for its renewable energy (RE) expansion.

ACEN executed a subscription contract with its wholly owned unit Buendia Christiana Holdings Corp. (BCHC), covering one million common shares and nine million redeemable preferred “A” shares.

The shares, with a par value of P100 each, will be issued out of the increase in BCHC’s authorized capital stock.

“BCHC will use the additional capital to fund the existing acquisitions and purchase of land for existing and future renewable energy projects,” ACEN said in a stock exchange filing.

The subscription price, payable in cash, was agreed following negotiations between the parties.

The transaction, approved by ACEN’s board in March 2023, is subject to regulatory approval for BCHC’s capital stock hike application.

In June last year, ACEN injected P875 million into BCHC through the subscription of 875,000 common shares and 7.88 million redeemable preferred shares.

The investment was also used to acquire new parcels of land for the group’s various potential power projects.

As the Ayala Group’s listed energy platform, ACEN aims to reach more than eight gigawatts of renewable electricity capacity by year-end from its current seven GW.

In the Philippines alone, the company has over 2,500 megawatts of capacity in operation and under construction. It has also grown its presence in international markets, including Australia, Indonesia, India, Vietnam, Malaysia and the United States.