Source: PhilStar
21 July 2020 – MANILA, Philippines — AC Energy Inc., the power unit of Ayala Corp., continues to expand overseas with its latest venture in India.
AC Energy said it is developing the 140-megawatt Sitara solar plant in India under UPC-AC Energy Solar, its 50-50 joint venture with UPC Solar Asia Pacific.
UPC-AC Energy Solar CEO and co-founder of UPC Solar Asia Pacific Pranab Kumar Sarmah said the project is the start of achieving at least one-gigawatt (GW) solar project installations in the Asian region in the next few years.
“This project is expected to reduce 2.4 million tons of CO2 in its life-cycle. This is our humble contribution to help India reach its renewable energy goal,” he said.
As it marks its first major investment in India, AC Energy’s total renewables capacity will reach over 1,200 MW.
“India is one of the world’s largest and fastest growing markets for renewable energy,” AC Energy president and CEO Eric Francia said.
“We look forward to participating in this market as we continue to expand around the region, and work towards our goal of reaching 5,000 MW of renewables by 2025,” he said.
UPC-AC Energy Solar won the power supply agreement for the project via a competitive bid at INR 2.48 per kwh, fixed over a 25-year period.
The Sitara solar project – located in Rajasthan, a desert state with the highest irradiation in India – is estimated to have a project cost of $68 million.
It is expected to start power generation in the first quarter of 2021, supplying energy to the Solar Energy Corp. of India.
The said project strengthens AC Energy’s presence in India together with long-time partner UPC Renewables, according to AC Energy International COO Patrice Clausse.
“As we join forces once again with UPC, which shares our commitment toward sustainability, we will continue to push for the deployment of new technologies and best practices to harness India’s growth potential for clean energy, while contributing to their renewable energy goals,” he said.
