ACEN lays down roadmap for coal plant retirement

ACEN Corp. has identified six initiatives tied to the retirement of its 246-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant, the Ayala-led renewable energy company said on Tuesday.

In a media release, the company said it will be prioritizing six areas for implementation of its Just Energy Transition or JET roadmap for retiring the plant under South Luzon Thermal Corp. (SLTEC).

These areas are clean energy replacement, power plant decommissioning, asset repurposing, community transition, worker reskilling and deployment, and cascading learnings and continuous improvement.

“While the planned coal to clean transition for SLTEC is scheduled more than a decade from now, it is never too early to develop a long-term roadmap,” ACEN President and Chief Executive Officer Eric T. Francia said.

“This will ensure that the transition is carried out in a just, thorough and proactive manner,” he added.

ACEN has launched its JET roadmap for the early retirement of the SLTEC coal power plant via technical assistance from Coal Asset Transition Accelerator (CATA) in partnership with Climate Smart Ventures (CSV).

“We are thankful for the partnership with CATA and CSV on this pioneering Just Energy Transition initiative, and more than happy to share learnings with the broader industry,” Mr. Francia said.

The 246-MW coal plant in Batangas was the only coal plant in ACEN’s portfolio.

Through the transition program, SLTEC’s coal power plant will be decommissioned as early as 2030, which is a decade ahead of its current retirement date.

“With the launch of its Just Energy Transition Roadmap, ACEN has yet again produced a ‘world’s first’ by being the first private power company in Asia to clearly articulate its plans for holistically addressing the future of a coal-fired power plant set for early decommissioning,” CSV Managing Partner Lawrence Ang said.

Last week, ACEN said its Singapore-based unit ACEN Renewables International Pte. Ltd. (ACRI) signed a $100-million green term-loan facility with MUFG Bank, Ltd. of Japan.

MUFG acted as the sole arranger and green loan coordinator for the loan, which operates under a five-year term, “and is encompassed within ACEN’s green finance framework,” the renewables firm said.

The loan forms part of ACRI’s fund-raising efforts, which have current approvals in place for up to $422 million, with forecast use of the funds in the next two years.

Currently, ACEN has approximately 4,430 MW of attributable capacity spanning the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, India, and Australia.

At the local bourse on Tuesday, shares in ACEN went down by eight centavos or 1.79% to close at P4.38 apiece. — Sheldeen Joy Talavera