By HENRY EMPEÑO | May 1, 2026

PALAUIG, Zambales — ACEN Corporation, the renewable energy platform of the Ayala Group, broke ground on Wednesday, April 29, for a 347-megawatt battery energy storage system (BESS) project at its Palauig Solar Farm here.

ACEN President and Chief Executive Officer Eric Francia led the groundbreaking rites at the firm’s solar facility in Barangay Salaza this town, where ACEN subsidiary Giga Ace 8 Inc. is currently undertaking a P26-billion expansion program.

Among those present in the groundbreaking were Botolan, Zambales Mayor Jun Omar Ebdane, who represented Governor Hermogenes Ebdane Jr., and Palauig Mayor Christian Daniel Aceron.

Ebdane said Zambales officials support the project, which is expected to provide stable and reliable power supply in the province.

ACEN said in a disclosure to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last January that the Palauig Solar Farm includes a 347-MW battery energy storage system with a projected commercial operation date (COD) in the second half of 2027.

“This 347-MW BESS is in addition to, and not yet reflected in, the 420-MW peak capacity (of the Plauig Solar Farm),” ACEN clarified in the SEC disclosure.

The company further clarified then “that no final investment decision has yet been made regarding the 347-MW BESS project,” adding that it will advise the SEC of any further developments.

ACEN also disclosed in the same statement that the Palauig Solar Farm project will be implemented in three phases, with CODs staggered in the second half of 2027 at the earliest and in the second half of 2028 at the latest.

It added that the Palauig solar plant will have a 25-year operational lifespan, while the BESS units will last up to 15 years.

ACEN’s Palauig BESS project is the latest in a string of renewable energy projects planned for implementation in Zambales, which is home to two of ACEN’s biggest solar farms: San Mar Solar Plant in San Marcelino town, which is the largest in the country to date, and the Palauig Solar Farm, the firm’s second biggest.

Last month, ACEN also announced plans for a 2,000-MW BESS project at its San Mar Solar Plant, with a projected cost of P15.8 billion.

According to project documents submitted to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), ACEN plans to start the San Marcelino BESS project by third quarter of 2026, and targets project completion by the end of 2027 and full facility operations by early 2028.

ACEN, which controls over 7,000 megawatts of renewable energy projects across the Asia-Pacific region,

has fully transitioned its portfolio to 100 percent renewable energy at the end of 2025, Francia said in the annual stockholders’ meeting on April 22.

At end-2025, ACEN’s total attributable renewable capacity in the Philippines has reached more than 2,400 MW, with 57 percent of these already operational, Francia added. ▲