ACEN, Yanara Sign PHP 2.28 Billion Financing for 75 MW Sual Solar Project

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On August 28, ACEN and Yanara, through project company Renovable Earth Corp., signed a senior secured term loan facility of up to PHP 2.28 billion to partially fund the construction of the Sual solar project in Pangasinan province. According to a disclosure filed with the Philippine Stock Exchange, RCBC served as senior lender, RCBC Capital Corporation as lead arranger, and RCBC Trust Corporation as facility agent and security trustee; the financing documents describe the project scale as up to 75 MW.

Renovable Earth Corp. is a project company under Yanara Philippines Corp., which was jointly established by ACEN and Yanara APAC B.V. The agreement signed is a combined loan and security agreement, under which the borrower assumes both mortgage and project asset security obligations, with Yanara Philippines participating in the financing as project sponsor and share security provider. ACEN stated that following the signing of the loan agreement, the project will continue to advance its financial close process.

The Sual solar project has entered the construction phase. ACEN's project progress materials published in March this year listed it as an under-construction project, with a capacity scale of 69 MW DC at the time, engineering completion of approximately 2%, and a target completion date of the fourth quarter of 2026. Once operational, the project is expected to generate approximately 112 GWh of electricity annually; ACEN and Yanara expect the construction phase to create approximately 1,500 jobs.

The project has also entered the grid connection facility approval process. The Energy Regulatory Commission issued a notice of hearing on August 18, as Renovable Earth Corp. is applying to construct, own, or operate dedicated point-to-point transmission facilities to connect the 49.5 MW AC Sual solar plant to the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines' Labrador-Bani 69 kV transmission line. The application pertains to regulatory approval of the project's grid connection facilities and does not constitute approval for commercial operation of the plant.

The Sual solar project has also been selected under the Department of Energy's fourth round of the Green Energy Auction (GEA-4). The DOE's winning bidder list shows that Renovable Earth Corp. was awarded 33 MW of capacity in that auction round, with a winning bid price of PHP 4.25/kWh and a delivery start date of December 24, 2026.