ACEN eyes hiking capital stock by P10 billion
ACEN Corp., the listed energy firm of the Ayala Group, plans to increase its authorized capital stock, which would allow the company to fund business growth.
In a disclosure on Tuesday, ACEN said its board of directors had approved the move to raise its capital stock from P48.4 billion to P58.4 billion.
Listed companies usually decide to jack up their capital stock to sell more shares to the investing public or welcome new investors, subsequently resulting in additional funds it can tap for future expansion.
Still, ACEN still needs to get approval from stockholders and the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Meanwhile, the group also said its large-scale battery energy storage project in New South Wales, Australia, would need an investment of $160 million
Last month, the Ayala subsidiary said construction works for the first phase of the 400-megawatt-hour project had already started.
The facility would “involve the integration of advanced grid-forming inverters to provide system strength, stability, and network security services,” the company said.
The energy storage facility would be built alongside its 720-megawatt (MW) solar project.
“This is the first large-scale battery storage project to be built in New England, so this is a great milestone for the region and the National Electricity Market,” said Tim Greenwaway, head of construction and engineering at ACEN Australia.
Quoted in an earlier disclosure, Greenaway was referring to a region in northern New South Wales.
Energy players, particularly those involved with renewable energy plants, invest in battery energy storage systems to store excess power for later use.
Eric Francia, president and chief executive officer of ACEN, earlier called on local officials to develop programs that could entice more investments in battery energy storage systems.
Aside from the Philippines and Australia, ACEN is present in Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Laos and the United States.
