The Department of Energy (DOE) has honored ACEN Corporation, an energy company under the Ayala Group, for its outstanding contributions to the country’s energy transition goals.

In a report by Philippine Star, ACEN was recognized at the first DOE Sustainable Energy Awards 2024 for its 81-megawatt (MW) North Luzon Renewables (NLR) wind project in Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte.

The awards progr

am aims to highlight achievements in renewable energy (RE) innovation, best practices, and significant contributions to the sector.

ACEN’s wind project wo

n under the category of RE projects in on-grid areas, commended for promoting a secure, reliable, clean, and resilient energy system.

Generating about 205,000 megawatt-hours (MWh) of clean energy annually, the NLR project powers around 50,000 homes while offsetting 144,000 metric tons of carbon emissions each year.

ACEN president and CEO Eric Francia said that the award underscores the positive environmental and socio-economic impacts of the company’s initiatives on its host communities.

Since 2014, the NLR wind farm has supplied clean energy to the Luzon grid and has helped position Ilocos Norte as a leading renewable energy hub in the Philippines.

Through the Sustainable Energy Awards, the DOE aims to recognize exceptional contributions from stakeholders in advancing renewable energy adoption.

Apart from recognizing on-grid RE project

s, the awards also ac knowledged efforts in providing clean energy solutions to private entities and local governments.

This year, the DOE reviewed 246 entries and selected one winner for each category.

Energy Undersecretary Rowena Cristina Guevara noted that the Philippines has made substantial progress in its e

nergy transition, with renewable energy at the core of its efforts.

Under the Philippine Energy Plan, the government aims to increase the share of renewables in the country’s energy mix from the current 22% to 35% by 2030 and 50% by 2040.

As the A

yala Group’s energy platform, ACEN targets to expand its renewable energy portfolio to 20 gigawatts of capacity by 2030.

The company’s current global portfolio stands at 6.8 gigawatts (GW), including over 3 GW of operational assets, 2.3 GW of projects under construction, and 1.4 GW in committed projects.