AC Energy Inc., the power generation unit of conglomerate Ayala Corp., said net profit in 2019 jumped nearly six-fold to P25 billion from P4.1 billion in 2018 due to the acquisition of new assets, cost recovery and gains from divestment of coal-fired power plants.
“This was lifted by the contribution of its newly operational solar projects in Vietnam, recovery of costs incurred from adjustments in the construction and operation of its power plants, and gains from the partial divestment of its thermal assets,” AC Energy said in a statement Monday.
The company ended 2019 with over 1.8 gigawatts (1,800 megawatts) of attributable capacity from assets in operation and under construction, spanning projects in the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam.
Attributable energy output rose 25 percent to 3,500 gigawatt-hours in 2019 with renewable energy sources accounting for 50 percent of total output.
“As we shift our portfolio towards renewable energy, AC Energy has developed a pipeline of more than 1,000 MW in various renewable projects in the Philippines and overseas that are expected to reach financial close within 2020,” said AC Energy president and chief executive officer Eric Francia.
“This is in line with the company’s goal of achieving 5,000 MW of renewables capacity by 2025,” he said.
AC Energy issued two green bonds in 2019, effectively raising $810 million in fresh capital to finance renewable energy investments.
The first issuance in January to February this year was the power company’s maiden green bonds. It raised $410 million.
The bonds were the first publicly syndicated Climate Bond Initiative-certified US dollar green bonds in Southeast Asia.
In November, AC Energy raised $400 million through the first-ever US dollar-denominated fixed-for-life green bond issued globally.
“With the electricity demand continuing to exhibit strong growth on the back of a robust economy across the region, as well as improvements in renewable energy cost and efficiency, we will continue to expand and diversify our generation capacity, and we will make significant strides towards our goal in becoming the leader in renewable energy across the region,” said Francia.
The company committed to scale up renewable energy expansion in the region and identified the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam, Australia, India and Myanmar as key target markets.