ACEN Surpasses Tree-Planting Goal Ahead of 2025 Target
- May 5, 2025
The Ayala-led energy company ACEN reached a key milestone in its environmental sustainability efforts: it planted over a million trees, one year ahead of its 2025 target.
The company launched its forest protection program in 2014, aiming to help combat climate change by restoring natural ecosystems crucial to keeping Earth’s temperature below 1.5°C. In 2021, ACEN committed to planting one million trees by 2025 as part of its broader climate resilience strategy. In 2024, it exceeded that goal, with more than one million trees planted across 2,815 hectares of forestland.
Seventy-one percent of the trees were planted at ACEN’s project sites, with the remaining twenty-nine percent planted in adopted areas under the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) National Greening Program, in mangrove ecosystems, and through other environmental partnerships.
“This achievement reflects our proactive approach to environmental stewardship,” said Irene Maranan, senior vice president for communications and sustainability of ACEN.
“By going beyond compliance and working closely with partners and local communities, we’re making tangible contributions to climate resilience and ecological restoration,” Maranan continued.
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Tree Planting: Five million trees by 2028
This achievement also supports ACEN’s recent commitment to the DENR’s “Forests for Life: 5 Million Trees by 2028” program. This nationwide reforestation initiative aims to sequester 3.5 million tons of carbon by 2038, with pilot sites in Rizal, Leyte, Bataan, Lanao del Norte, Bukidnon, and Ilocos Norte.
The DENR identified these six provinces as “critical landscapes that require immediate reforestation efforts.”
“The restoration of our forests is an urgent climate action strategy. Enhancing reforestation in priority areas will secure water supply and fortify the country’s defenses against flooding and landslides,” said DENR Secretary Maria Antonia Yulo Loyzaga during the initiative’s launch last March.
“This initiative also complements our ongoing efforts to expand mangrove forests and coastal greenbelts, which serve as natural barriers against storm surges and coastal erosion,” Loyzaga continued.
The program will officially roll out in 2025, beginning with site preparation, seedling production, and the mobilization of partners. Planting activities and forest maintenance are scheduled for 2026 and 2027, while 2028 will focus on program documentation and evaluation.
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A measurable success
One of ACEN’s standout sustainability efforts is its 700-hectare Ilocos Norte Conservation Estate, located within the 81-megawatt North Luzon Renewables (NLR) wind farm. Established in 2014, the estate reflects an integrated approach to environmental stewardship, combining reforestation, agroforestry, and biodiversity conservation in a single, long-term initiative.
To help drive economic development in Ilocos Norte, ACEN partnered with more than 500 residents from Pagudpud and Caparispisan, employing them as forest rangers and farmers. These community members were instrumental in advancing the company’s reforestation goals by leading tree-planting efforts and managing seedling production.
Between 2014 and 2022, these initiatives produced over 706,000 seedlings and planted more than 500,000 endemic and fruit-bearing trees across 356 hectares of previously barren land within the Conservation Estate.
To measure the impact of its environmental initiatives and ensure tangible results, ACEN carried out a baseline assessment of carbon stocks in the Ilocos Norte Conservation Estate in 2018. The study was conducted by the University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB) College of Forestry and Natural Resources and ACEN’s North Luzon Renewables (NLR) forestry team.
After five years, ACEN commissioned the independent auditor Carbon Check to verify the site’s carbon sequestration, using the ISO 14064-2:2019 standard for greenhouse gas projects.
The Ilocos Norte Conservation Estate now holds 94 kilotons of carbon and absorbs 345,000 tons of carbon dioxide (CO₂)—an environmental benefit comparable to removing the greenhouse gas emissions of approximately 82,000 cars annually.
With its measurable impact and community-rooted approach, the Ilocos Norte Conservation Estate is a powerful example of how nature-based solutions can foster climate resilience and sustainability. As the DENR’s “Forests for Life” program takes root nationwide, there is renewed hope that similar efforts will help restore ecosystems, uplift communities, and shape a greener, more climate-resilient Philippines.
Sources:
https://www.acenrenewables.com/sustainability/esg/environment/biodiversity/
https://globalnation.inquirer.net/274249/acen-grows-beyond-the-goal-1-million-trees-and-counting
https://denr.gov.ph/news-events/denr-launches-forests-for-life-initiative-targets-5m-trees-by-2028/
https://mb.com.ph/2023/9/16/acen-and-the-conservation-estate
https://www.carboncheck.co.in/sites/default/files/2024-05/CCIPL%201856_ISO_FVR.pdf
