Ayala's ACEN clinches new Makati clean power contract
ACEN Corp., the renewable energy arm of the Ayala Group, has secured a deal to power the Philippine AXA Life Centre in Makati City, marking the latest high-profile office tower to shift toward clean energy.
In a filing with the Philippine Stock Exchange on Friday, ACEN announced that its retail electricity supply unit, ACEN RES, will provide the building with electricity sourced entirely from renewable energy.
The transition was facilitated through the government’s Green Energy Option Program, known as GEOP, which allows large electricity consumers to choose their own power providers rather than relying on local franchise utilities.
Under current regulations, consumers with an average monthly demand of at least 100 kilowatts are eligible to participate in the program to seek more competitive pricing and sustainable supply.
Arturo Tanyag, president of the Philippine AXA Life Center Condominium Corp., said the partnership is a milestone for the building’s property management strategy.
While the tower has been a fixture of the Makati central business district for decades, Tanyag noted that long-term resilience requires adapting to future environmental standards.
He added that the shift to renewables helps reduce the building’s carbon footprint while assisting corporate tenants in meeting their own global sustainability mandates.
For ACEN, the deal solidifies its dominant position in the country’s liberalized retail electricity market. ACEN RES currently controls 57 percent of the GEOP segment, according to data from the Energy Regulatory Commission.
The company has aggressively pursued retail contracts as part of its broader goal to expand its renewable capacity in the Philippines and across the Asia-Pacific region.
Sheila Mina, ACEN RES vice president and head of account management, said the transition of a major commercial hub like the Philippine AXA Life Centre signals that sustainability has become a business imperative for the local real estate sector.
Following the agreement, the tower was awarded the “Powered by Renewable Energy” badge, a recognition ACEN has bestowed upon nearly 100 facilities nationwide that have fully transitioned to clean power. (Gabriell Christel Galang)