ACEN, GenZero, Keppel seek quick exit of coal-fired plants

Ayala-backed ACEN Corp. forged new partnerships to push for the early retirement of a coal-fired power plant (CFPP) in Batangas.

In a disclosure on Monday, ACEN said it signed an agreement with Tamasek-led investment platform GenZero and Singapore’s Keppel Ltd. to explore the use of transition credits (TCs), a financing approach used to fund the phaseout of coal plant assets while pursuing replacement facilities that use renewable energy.

The deal involves closing down the 246-megawatt (MW) South Luzon Thermal Energy Corp. (SLTEC) coal plant, with a target to eventually transform it into a clean energy dispatch facility.

The groups are looking at deploying integrated renewables and energy storage systems consisting of a solar plant and battery storage.

READ: ACEN profit up 49%

“The origination and sale of TCs will help to accelerate the decommissioning of the 246 MW SLTEC CFPP located in Calaca, Batangas, by 10 years (i.e. 2030), and also support just transition initiatives,” it said.

If completed, ACEN said this is seen to be one of the world’s first converted coal plants to generate transition credits.

“We appreciate the strong support of Keppel and GenZero for this pioneering initiative. The Philippines is at the forefront of energy transition initiatives, and this collaboration potentially unlocks further opportunities in the country. We also believe that this model can scale across the region, and even globally,” said Eric Francia, president and chief executive officer of ACEN.

Cindy Lim, chief executive of Keppel’s Infrastructure Division, said that if the partnership becomes successful, more coal plants would be shut down and replaced with clean energy assets.

“The partnership provides us the opportunity to harness both technological and financing solutions to accelerate the shift towards low-carbon and renewable energy sources in the Southeast Asia region,” Lim said.

ACEN is targeting to expand its renewable capacity to 20 gigawatts (GW) by 2030 from the current 4.8 GW. INQ