Synergy Consulting has announced its role as lead financial and valuation advisor in the privatisation of the 796.5MW Caliraya-Botocan-Kalayaan (CBK) Hydroelectric Power Plant Complex in the Philippines.
The firm advised the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corporation (PSALM) on the transaction, which concluded with the transfer of rights to Cleanergy 9 Power Inc in February 2026.
The deal follows the selection of the Thunder Consortium — comprising Aboitiz Power Renewables Inc, Sumitomo Corporation and J-POWER — as preferred bidder in July 2025 with an offer of PHP 36.266 billion. Commercial close was reached in August 2025, with final completion achieved in December 2025.
The CBK transaction is the first privatization in the Philippines involving a portfolio of hydropower assets that includes a large pumped storage facility. It forms part of the Philippine government’s broader power sector privatisation programme.
Synergy Consulting said the transaction reflects the increasing importance of flexible and dispatchable generation assets as the country expands renewable energy capacity and seeks to improve grid reliability.
The Philippines power market has seen rising ancillary service costs since mid-2025, alongside reforms to reserve market operations and growing policy support for energy storage and wholesale market development.
Industry participants increasingly view pumped storage assets as strategically important due to their ability to provide energy balancing, reserve capacity and system support in renewables-heavy grids.
According to Synergy Consulting, the CBK transaction positions the asset portfolio to capture value from evolving market structures that increasingly reward operational flexibility and grid responsiveness.
