Aboitiz Renewables Inc., the renewable energy arm of Aboitiz Power Corporation (AboitizPower), broke ground on its 239-megawatt peak (MWp) Luna Solar Power Plant and a 65-megawatt (MW) battery energy storage system in Barangay Luna, Cadiz City, July 24, effectively expanding its solar portfolio in the province and supporting the push to increase the share of renewable energy in the Philippine energy mix.
Once online, the Luna Solar Power Plant will be the company’s largest solar plant in the Visayas and its third in the region, while its pairing with the battery energy storage system makes Luna the first integrated solar and battery energy storage facility of Aboitiz Renewables in Negros Island.
Luna joins Aboitiz Renewables’ two other solar plants in Negros Occidental: the 173-MWp Calatrava Solar Power Plant in Calatrava, the company’s largest solar power plant to date, and the 59-MWp SacaSun facility in San Carlos City.
Developed in coordination with local government units and host communities, the Luna project builds on Negros Island’s significant potential for solar development, the region being among the areas in the country rich in solar irradiance.
“This groundbreaking marks the beginning of many more years of working together, and we look forward to building that future with the people of Negros in the years to come,” Aboitiz Renewables president Jimmy Villaroman said in his speech at the groundbreaking.
Cadiz Mayor Salvador Escalante Jr. said the Luna project “only shows our capability to host, to manage, and accept such big projects, and it signifies the intention of our city to expand beyond agriculture.”
“Today is a big event for our city, and it is both a pleasure and a privilege to host such investment from our good partners, Aboitiz Renewables,” he added
Aside from Villaroman and Escalante, the groundbreaking ceremony was also joined by 2nd District Rep. Alfredo Marañon III, Cadiz Vice Mayor John Vincent Escalante, and chief growth officer David Aboitiz, chief operating officer Alexander Coo, and vice president for Engineering and Execution Cris Alidon, all of Aboitiz Renewables, and Han Xu of Gedi Construction Development Corporation.
Luna’s groundbreaking pushes Aboitiz Renewables further along its RE expansion, with the project marking the beginning of many more years of working with the people of Negros as the company continues to grow its clean energy portfolio nationwide.
Villaroman said the company’s solar journey began in Negros Occidental with Sacasun, its very first solar plant in San Carlos City. “And today, as we break ground on Project Luna—which will surpass even Calatrava once in operation—returning to this island for our third and biggest project feels like coming home.”
“Returning to this island is a deliberate choice as Negros Occidental has proven itself an ideal hub for renewable energy, not only because of its natural potential but because of the proactive local policies that allow clean energy projects to move forward with confidence,” he stressed.
Aboitiz Renewables’ growing clean energy portfolio now includes 45 RE facilities across the Philippines, spanning solar, hydro, geothermal, and energy storage. It continues to expand its presence, backed by a development pipeline of more than 1,800 megawatts in solar, hydro, and wind projects. ||
