Ayala teams up with Kiwis for possible collab

Zobel family-led Ayala Corp. has partnered with the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, Wellington’s economic development and trade promotion agency, to expand business opportunities across various sectors.The country’s oldest conglomerate on Tuesday said the cooperation agreement sought to explore potential collaboration opportunities with New Zealand, with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon recognizing that the Philippines was among the “fastest growing” economies in the region.“We’re very grateful to be here. [Ayala] is a conglomerate with huge capabilities and huge interests in multiple sectors across the Philippine economy,” Luxon said in a joint statement.

This came as a result of Luxon’s recent state visit to the Philippines, during which Ayala Corp., whose portfolio includes real estate, power, banking and telecommunications, among others, gave a tour of its headquarters in Makati City.

“We are excited that there is renewed interest for New Zealand to explore opportunities in our country. Likewise, we are interested in what we can learn from our Kiwi friends across a wide range of industries and sectors,” said Ayala Corp. chair Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala.The conglomerate did not elaborate on the scope of its partnership with the New Zealand government’s international business development agency.

The Ayala Group earlier said it would increase its capital spending this year by up to 14 percent to P284 billion to bankroll the expansion plans of its other units.

ACEN Corp., its listed energy platform, aims to expand its renewable energy portfolio to 20,000 megawatts (MW) by 2030. It currently has close to 6,000 MW of capacity.Property arm Ayala Land Inc., meanwhile, plans to shell out P100 billion this year to launch more projects under its premium brands, Ayala Land Premier and Alveo Land. —Meg J. Adonis INQ