AYALA-LED ACEN Corp. reported a surge in its net income for the first quarter to P2.03 billion, a fivefold increase from P405.03 million a year earlier, driven by higher net generation on better wind resources.
“After weathering several challenges in 2022, we began the year with encouraging results brought about by the growth in generation output,” Eric T. Francia, president and chief executive officer of ACEN, told the stock exchange on Thursday.
In the first quarter, ACEN recorded a 23.5% increase in its consolidated revenues to P9.14 billion from P7.40 billion in the previous year, fueled by higher revenues from electricity sales.
ACEN said its revenues were lifted by better output from its wind resources and the start of the commissioning of new power plants in the Philippines and Australia.
“As our renewable energy investments begin to bear fruit, ACEN is now on a stronger footing as we continue working towards our aspiration of reaching 20 GW (gigawatts) of renewables by 2030,” Mr. Francia said.
For the January-to-March period, ACEN’s attributable EBITDA or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization from non-consolidate associates and joint ventures increased by 76% to P4.6 billion.
ACEN said its total attributable renewables output increased by 20% to 1,058 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in the first quarter.
“The strong financial results reflect the resilience of our strategy to expand renewables capacity, supported by a robust balance sheet. ACEN’s strong cash position and diverse mix of financing options continue to enable the achievement of our 2030 aspirations,” said Maria Corazon G. Dizon, treasurer, chief finance officer and compliance officer of ACEN.
In the Philippines, ACEN’s renewable energy generation also saw a 31% increase to 310 GWh, while strong wind resources in Vietnam lifted the company’s international output by 15% to 748 GWh.
The figure also includes contributions from the partial commissioning of the first phase of its New England solar project in Australia and better availability of its geothermal facility in Indonesia.
To date, ACEN has 4,000 megawatts of attributable capacity spread across the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, India, and Australia.
At the stock exchange on Thursday, shares in the company gained two centavos or 0.33% to end at P6.02 apiece. — Ashley Erika O. Jose