Southeast Asia's shift to renewables a blow to Japan's plant builders

Philippines' Ayala vows to become coal-free power provider by 2030

20200515N coal power plant

Ayala's energy company runs this coal-fired plant in Batangas province in the Philippines.

JUN ENDO and AZUSA KAWAKAMI, Nikkei staff writers

MANILA/TOKYO -- Philippine conglomerate Ayala plans to exit coal-fired power generation by the end of the decade, becoming the first major power company in Southeast Asia to quit the fossil fuel.

The move by Ayala's energy unit reflects a broader shift in the region toward renewable energy, whose cost is now on par with that of fossil-fuel power generation. The trend will be a blow to Japanese plant exporters that relied on the region, including Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.

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