Ayala Corp. is eyeing Indonesia and other countries for possible investment opportunities in the power sector in diversifying its business portfolio.
“We are looking for acquisition opportunities in the power space to grow our portfolio and hopefully diversify it in terms of thermal versus renewable capacity. We would be open to looking at opportunities overseas, including Indonesia,” Ayala Corp. managing director and corporate strategy head Paolo Borromeo said.
However, he did not mention whether the group was interested in the $3-billion geothermal assets of Chevron Corp. in Indonesia. (Read: Local power groups eyeing Chevron geothermal assets)
Chevron operates a 650-MW geothermal project in Salak and Darajat fields in west Java.
“There are quite a few more in the pipeline that we’re working on and it spans the entire value chain, so hopefully we make a few more investments before the yearend,” Borromeo said.
Chevron was said to be selling its geothermal assets in Indonesia and the Philippines in attempt to preserve its dividend amid weak oil prices. The US Company has a 40% interest in the Philippine Geothermal Production Co. Inc. that produces energy for Tiwi and Mak-Ban geothermal power plants.