Citicore, ACEN Boost Capacity Of Pampanga Solar Plant

The Arayat-Mexico solar farm, a joint venture between Citicore and ACEN, Ayala group’s listed energy platform, reached its full capacity last March 23, 2022, and is expected to add much-needed capacity to the grid in time for the demand surge during the hot summer season.

Photo Insert: In less than a year after breaking ground, the 72 MW Arayat-Mexico solar farm already commenced exporting power to the grid.

“As we prepare to infuse this new asset into CREIT to grow its renewable energy asset portfolio in the coming months, our construction team is ready to break ground the Phase 2 by next month which will increase the total plant capacity to 116 MW upon completion hopefully before the end of the year,” said Citicore CEO Oliver Tan.

After its successful energization, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) will be conducting its own set of testing for grid compliance, which is expected to be completed by the second week of April.

“The on-time energization of this project further demonstrated Citicore’s solid track record in greenfield development to Engineering, Procurement and Construction to Plant Operations and Maintenance, a vertically integrated business model like no other,” according to Tan.

"This huge solar plant shall be managed and operated in-house by our Citicore Property Managers, Inc., currently, we have eight solar farms and one micro-grid solar rooftops under our management.”

“The Arayat-Mexico solar farm is yet another example of how partners leveraging on their collective expertise, experience and determination can deliver a high-quality project safely and on time,” said Jose Maria Zabaleta, Chief Development Officer of ACEN.

“I am proud of the teams who worked tirelessly on this project from early-stage development and construction towards operation.”

Once fully operational, the 72 MW solar farm will produce 105 GWh of renewable energy annually, enough to power 45,000 households while avoiding approximately 72,000 MT of CO2 emissions annually. The solar project has a potential expansion of up to 116 MW.

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