ACEN unit to invest up to $18 million in 70-MW Bangladesh solar project

ACEN Corp. said its unit plans to invest as much as $18 million (P1.04 billion) in the construction of a 70-megawatt (MW) solar project in Bangladesh.

ACEN Renewables International Pte. Ltd. is set to infuse capital in IBV ACEN Renewables Asia Pte. Ltd., its joint venture company with Singapore-based solar developer ib vogt (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., the company said in a stock exchange filing on Thursday.

“The infusion/investment will be used to acquire the relevant project holding company and funding for necessary capital expenditure,” ACEN said.

The investment is part of ACEN’s expected contribution of as much as $200-million equity investment to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy in Asia.

The joint venture will focus on shovel-ready projects in Bangladesh, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and other countries in the Asia-Pacific region, with a minimum target operational capacity of 1,000 MW.

All regulatory approvals and conditions had been satisfied as of August 2023, making the shareholder’s agreement for the joint venture company effective.

Ib vogt Singapore is an affiliate of ib vogt GmbH, a German company that specializes in developing and delivering large-scale turn-key photovoltaic plants. The company has built or has projects under construction worth 4.3 gigawatts (GW), with a project pipeline of 55 GW.

ACEN, the listed energy platform of Ayala Corp., boasts a portfolio of about 4.8 GW of attributable renewable capacity in operation and under construction, as well as over one GW worth of signed agreements and competitive tenders it had won.

The company has presence in the Philippines, Australia, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Laos, and the US.

ACEN shares shed 3.2% to close at P4.84 each. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera