Aboitiz Power Corp. (AboitizPower) has broken ground on a 239-megawatt-peak (MWp) solar power project paired with a 65-megawatt (MW) battery energy storage system in Cadiz City, Negros Occidental, with a target energization date of 2028.

In a statement issued on Monday, the company announced that its renewable energy subsidiary, Aboitiz Renewables, Inc., has commenced construction of the Luna Solar Power Plant. The facility marks the company's first integrated renewable energy and battery energy storage project on Negros Island. Co-locating battery storage with solar allows electricity generated during peak daylight hours to be stored and dispatched when solar output declines, a configuration increasingly adopted across the Philippines to help manage the intermittency that large-scale solar introduces to the grid.

Once the Luna project becomes operational, it will raise Aboitiz Renewables' total solar capacity in Negros Occidental to 471 MWp.

"Our solar journey began here in Negros Occidental with SacaSun, our very first solar plant in San Carlos City. 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," said Aboitiz Renewables President Jimmy A. Villaroman.

He emphasized that the decision to return to Negros Island was strategic. "Returning to this island is a deliberate choice as Negres 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 added.

The addition of the Luna project will bring Aboitiz Renewables' portfolio to 45 renewable energy facilities across the Philippines, spanning solar, hydroelectric, geothermal, and energy storage assets. The company currently has a development pipeline exceeding 1,800 MW of solar, hydroelectric, and wind projects. The buildout aligns with the Philippine government's National Renewable Energy Program target of raising renewables to 35 percent of the power generation mix by 2030 and 50 percent by 2040.

For 2026, AboitizPower has allocated P62 billion in capital expenditures, directed primarily toward renewable energy and battery energy storage system initiatives.

The Aboitiz Group maintains its position as the country's largest power producer, with a total attributable generation capacity of 6,850.63 MW, accounting for a 24.3% share of the market.

— Sheldeen Joy Talavera