Acciona, a global sustainable infrastructure company, announced plans to expand its investments in the Philippines and continue collaborating with government and local partners on transformative projects.

In a statement, Jose Diaz-Caneja, Acciona Infrastructure chief executive officer, said the Spain-based company plans to "keep growing" in the country, noting the attractiveness of the public-private partnership (PPP) model.

Diaz-Caneja made the remarks earlier this month during the Pilipinas Conference 2024, a gathering of key government officials and top business leaders organized by the Stratbase Group.

Acciona currently has eight infrastructure projects in the Philippines, including railways, bridges, expressways, and water treatment facilities. Its Southeast Asia headquarters is located in Manila.

“We saw a pipeline of opportunities in different sectors of infrastructure… relocating the headquarters to Manila has been one of the best business decisions we’ve made in the region,” Diaz-Caneja said.

"We’re now executing our eighth project here. All of them have been successful,” the official added.

Ruben Camba, Acciona Infrastructure managing director for Southeast Asia, also recognized the efforts of the government to ensure the success of its infrastructure programs.

“[I commend] the way that the government is expanding the number of projects through multilateral banks, working with Asian development, the Japanese funds. This administration has also done a little bit more [in legislation] putting together the [revised IRR of the] BOT law, launching the PPP code,” Camba said.

Both Diaz-Caneja and Camba emphasized the importance of strategic collaboration with the government and local partners in the Philippines.

“All these would mean nothing if we would not have been able to have the straightforward friendship and collaborative relationship that we have had with our partners,”Diaz-Caneja said.

Ayala Corporation Chairman Jaime Augusto Zobel de Ayala emphasized the importance of having international companies like Acciona invest in the Philippines.

“International companies like Acciona can give us a feel for, you know, what are the elements in other countries that are working and that have made life easy for them and make them want to allocate more capital,” Zobel said.

With eight successful projects and a solid presence in the Philippines, Acciona reiterated its commitment to driving sustainable infrastructure development in the country.