Ayala-led ACEN Corporation and Australian partner Yindjibarndi Aboriginal Corporation (YAC) have agreed an initial AU$1.0-billion investment for their planned 750-megawatt solar and wind farm  with battery storage project in Australia. In a statement, ACEN said that the investment will form part of the higher-end target of 3.0 gigawatts (3,000 megawatts) of renewable energy (RE) installations that they will be pursuing in the Pilbara region of Australia. According to the Filipino firm, the targeted investments will be concretized via their joint venture company Yindjibarndi Energy Corporation (YEC). “The initial goal of YEC is to have 750 MW of combined wind, solar, and battery storage under construction within the next few years, representing an investment of more than AUD$1 billion,” ACEN stressed. The tie-up deal, as emphasized by the Ayala energy firm, had been inked last June via its subsidiary ACEN Investments Australia Pty. Ltd. “The YEC is tasked with advancing major renewable energy projects on Yindjibarndi Ngurra (country), which is conveniently located near major industrial energy users,” ACEN said. ACEN International CEO Patrice Clausse noted that “the Pilbara region is home to some of the largest industrial energy users globally, many of whom have expressed their desire to transition to a carbon-neutral future.” For the targeted installations, he stated that their new JV firm is  “actively engaged in promising dialogues with potential off-take customers to purchase the renewable energy.” Australia is a core offshore market, wherein the massive-scale RE investments of the Ayala firm, have been successively taking off from drawing board. “ACEN and the Yindjibarndi people will jointly develop wind, solar, and renewable energy storage projects on Yindjibarndi Ngurra, an area of approximately 13,000 km2 within the Yindjibarndi native title determination areas,” the Filipino firm said. As conveyed, Yindjibarndi could have “equity participation of 25-percent to 50-percent in all projects,” and there would also be preferred contracting with Yindjibarndi-owned businesses as well as job opportunities for people in the community. Michael Woodley, chief executive of YAC, cited that their country “is well-located for renewable energy development, so we made the decision early to lead.” He indicated that their company “established a small team and set out to find a partner with the right capabilities and values, which led us to ACEN.” Woodley further said “the agreement with ACEN means that the Yindjibarndi people can actively participate in Australia’s renewable energy transition in a significant way that provides long-term economic benefits to our community, while also ensuring that we can protect and preserve all areas within Yindjibarndi Ngurra which are of cultural, spiritual, and environmental significance to us.”