ACEN bags giant Aussie RE contract

ACEN Australia, an affiliate of Ayala-backed energy company ACEN Corp., has secured the largest awarded contract to date under the Australian government’s Capacity Investment Scheme (CISA) for its Valley of the Winds project.

“The central government, the Australian government, bid out capacity contracts to enable renewables. We were the largest. This (project) is in Central West Orana,” ACEN president and CEO Eric Francia confirmed in an interview with reporters early this week.

“It’s a slightly different structure (than our Green Energy Auction Program), but it enables these renewable projects. So, we won that. That’s huge. That’s a very big project,” he added.

The Valley of the Winds project, located in Coolah, New South Wales, within the Central West Orana Renewable Energy Zone, has a net capacity of approximately 900 megawatts (MW). It is projected to power 500,000 homes annually and generate 500 jobs during its construction phase.

It is currently awaiting development consent, with commercial operations targeted for December 2030.

Francia noted that the project has potential for expansion through battery storage.

Last week, the Australian government announced 19 projects selected in the latest national tender round under CISA to ensure sufficient new affordable and reliable electricity is added to the grid to meet demand through 2030.

The scheme’s competitive process evaluates projects based on financial value and alignment with Australia’s energy reliability and emissions reduction goals.

ACEN operates in the Philippines, Australia, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Laos and the United States.

The company is working to transition its generation portfolio to 100 percent renewable energy by 2025 and achieve Net Zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.