CREIT to raise funds for solar farm expansion 

Citicore Energy REIT Corporation, the country’s first renewable energy real estate investment trust, is considering raising new funds next year to finance the acquisition of additional land for the expansion of its solar farm portfolio, according to a report by Manila Bulletin.

During the firm’s annual stockholders’ meeting, CREIT President and CEO Oliver Tan said, “Any new land acquisition would involve new fundraising, we are looking at around next year.”

He explained that this is because “we already fully deployed the (proceeds) of the green bond that we raised two years ago” adding that they intend to acquire more land for the second gigawatt of sponsor Citicore Renewable Energy Corporation’s (CREC)five-year target of one gigawatt per year.

“We will first complete the acquisition of the batch of 250 megawatts of solar assets before the end of the year before any plans of acquiring new properties,” noted Tan.

The latest batch to be acquired from CREC will not involve any land but will be purely for the solar plant facilities, since the land where the solar assets were developed is already owned by CREIT.

Meanwhile, Tan said that the first batch of solar assets being built on land that CREIT acquired in 2023 will be operational by the third or fourth quarter of this year, as part of CREC’s goal of energizing approximately one gigawatt worth of new solar facilities by the end of 2025.

During the meeting, CREIT Chairman Edgar Saavedra stressed that, “Our land assets, which are primed to support such (renewable energy) developments, are an attractive opportunity for investors.

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Tan, meanwhile, underscored the company’s vision to be the foremost Energy REIT investment in the Philippines, delivering superior yields from a portfolio of sustainable prime land and solar assets.

“Our accomplishments translated positively to our investors through record high dividends, and to our host communities through sustainability programs conducted with the Citicore Group,” Tan said.

CREIT felt the full impact of its asset infusions in 2023, adding seven land parcels totalling 5.12 million square meters. This, combined with an already strong guaranteed base lease and a 48 percent increase on variable lease revenues, translated to a five percent increase in revenues to %u20B11.9 billion in 2024. Net income also increased to %u20B11.4 billion, while EBITDA grew to %u20B11.9 billion.

All 14 assets in CREIT’s green portfolio were maintained in 2024, totaling 7.1 million sqm of gross leasable space with a 100-percent occupancy rate year-round and an impressive above-industry-standard weighted average lease expiry (WALE) of 20.44 years as of the end of 2024.