Leadership Team
Eric Francia
President & CEO
ERIC FRANCIA is the President and CEO of ACEN and serves on its Board of Directors. He is also a Senior Managing Director and member of the Management Committee of Ayala Corporation. Under his leadership, Ayala established its energy platform from a standing start in 2011 and became one of the largest renewable energy platforms in the region, with over 7 GW of attributable renewable energy capacity across the Asia Pacific.
Eric has also led pioneering initiatives in early coal retirement, including the successful completion ofthe world’s first market-based Energy Transition Mechanism (ETM).
Eric earned a master’s degree in Management Studies at the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, graduating with first-class honors. He received his undergraduate degree in Humanities and Political Economy from the University of Asia & the Pacific, graduating magna cum laude.
Jose Maria Zabaleta
Group Chief Operating Officer & Group
Chief Development Officer
SECH ZABALETA is the Group Chief Operating Officer and Group Chief Development Officer of ACEN. He is also the President of ACEN Global Development Group, Inc., a member of the ACEN Group Management Committee, and Executive Chairman of ACEN Australia.
Sech has over 20 years of experience in renewable energy. Prior to joining ACEN, he co-founded Bronzeoak Philippines and served as its Chief Executive Officer. Bronzeoak was an early mover in clean-technology energy development in the Philippines, and its energy businesses were integrated into AC Energy in early 2017.
He holds a master’s degree in Business Administration from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business in the U.S.A. and a Bachelor of Science in Management Honors degree from the Ateneo de Manila University. He has experience from the Philippines, Hong Kong, the U.K., the U.S., and Australia.
Jonathan Back
Group Chief Finance Officer & Group Chief Strategy Officer
JONATHAN BACK is the Group Chief Finance Officer and Group Chief Strategy Officer of ACEN. He also serves as a Director of ACEN Global Development Group, Inc., ACEN Technical Services, Inc., ACEN Australia, and Yindjibarndi Energy Corporation (YEC), and is Chairman of ACEN Shared Services (ACES). He is a lawyer and banker with over 25 years of experience across legal practice, investment banking, and private investments, with deep domain expertise in equity capital markets, corporate finance, and advisory work for large infrastructure, power, and telecommunications projects.
Prior to joining ACEN, Jonathan was a Director and Executive Vice Chairman of BPI International Finance Ltd., BPI’s Hong Kong banking subsidiary, and concurrently served as co-head of Wealth Management and head of BPI’s international businesses. He also served as a Director of Schools Relief Initiative Ltd., a Hong Kong-based charity supporting education in Southern Sri Lanka. Earlier in his career, he was an Executive Director at Goldman Sachs in Hong Kong (Corporate Finance and Equity Capital Markets) and later served as Managing Director and Head of Asian Equity Capital Markets at J.P. Morgan in Hong Kong.
He received first class honors in the solicitor’s final exam and holds a Bachelor of Civil Laws degree from the University of Oxford, where he also graduated with first class honors.
Patrice Clausse
Group Chief Investment Officer
PATRICE CLAUSSE is the Group Chief Investment Officer of ACEN. He is also President and Chief Executive Officer of ACEN International. He joined the Ayala Group in May 2010 as an advisor to ACEN International, Inc. and became a founding member of the ACEN management team in 2011, where he led the business development and operations teams. He currently leads ACEN’s investment business, with a strategic focus on Southeast Asia, India, and Western Australia, and serves on the Board of Directors and/or Management & Advisory Committee of ACEN International Projects.
Prior to joining Ayala, Patrice was a management consultant with McKinsey & Company in London and with Marakon Associates (part of Charles River Associates).
He holds a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School, graduating with high distinction as a Baker Scholar, and earned both master’s and bachelor’s degrees in Manufacturing Engineering from the University
of Cambridge (UK).
John Philip Orbeta
Group Chief Human Resources, Group Chief Administrative Officer & Group Chief Risk Officer
JP ORBETA is the Group Chief Human Resources, Group Chief Administrative Officer, and Group Chief Risk Officer of ACEN. He is also a Director of ACEN Global Development Group, Inc. and ACEN Shared Services (ACES).
JP was a Managing Director of Ayala Corporation, where he served as Chief Human Resources officer and Group Head for Corporate Resources from 2005 to September 2021. Today, he serves on the boards of several companies across the Ayala group, including AG Legal and Globe group’s ASTICOM and HCX, and is currently the chairman of the Ayala Multi-Purpose Cooperative (Ayala Coop). Previously, he was the President and CEO of Ayala Automotive Holdings Corporation, Automobile Central Enterprise, Inc. and Ayala Aviation. He also previously served as a Director on the boards of BPI Family Bank, ALFM Mutual Funds, AC Health and Ayala Foundation.
Prior to joining Ayala Corporation, he was the Vice President and Global Practice Director of the Human Capital Consulting Group at Watson Wyatt Worldwide (now Willis Towers Watson).
JP completed his Advanced Management Programs at Harvard Business School, IMD and INSEAD, and holds a degree in A.B. Economics from the Ateneo de Manila University.
Cecile Cruzabra
Group Treasurer
CECILE CRUZABRA is the Group Treasurer of ACEN. She is also the Treasurer and Chief Finance Officer of ACEIC and ACEN International, Inc. Prior to joining the Company, she was the Chief Finance Officer and Chief Risk Officer of Manila Water Company, Inc., from 2018 to September 2021, and the Treasurer of Ayala Corporation from 2014 to 2018. She is also a fellow of the Institute of Corporate Directors.
Cecile’s career experience spans research, treasury, risk management, and finance, having worked at Makati Business Club, Sun Hung Kai Securities, Metro Pacific Corporation, Steniel Manufacturing Corporation, Globe Telecom, Inc., Altimax Broadcasting Co., Inc., and Bethlehem Holdings, Inc. She also taught finance at the De La Salle Graduate School of Business and the Asian Institute of Management, and Economics at the Ateneo de Manila University.
She completed her master’s degree in Business Administration from the Asian Institute of Management. She graduated with a degree in B.A. in Economics (Honors Program) from Ateneo de Manila University.
Maria Franchette Acosta
Corporate Secretary
FRANCHETTE ACOSTA is the Corporate Secretary of ACEN. She is also the Corporate Secretary, Head of the Corporate Governance Group, and Chief Legal Officer of Ayala Corporation.
Franchette also serves as Corporate Secretary of Integrated Micro-Electronics, Inc., Ayala Land, Inc., AREIT, Inc., and Globe Telecom, Inc.
She has been in the practice of lw for 25 years, including 18 years with Villaraza & Angangco Law Firm, where she served as Senior Partner, Co-Managing Partner, and Head of the Corporate and Commercial Department.
She previously served as Assistant Secretary at the Office of the Chief Presidential Legal Counsel of the Republic of the Philippines from 2001 to 2003. She has been recognized as expert counsel by leading legal directories and publications, including Chambers Global, Chambers Asia Pacific, and The Legal 500, and is consistently included in Asia Business Law Journal’s Top 100 Lawyers in the Philippines.
Franchette earned her Master of Laws degree from New York University in 2003 and ranked third in the Philippine Bar Examinations. She obtained her Bachelor of Laws degree
from the University of the Philippines College of Law in 1998, graduating class valedictorian and cum laude. She also holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Economics from the University of the Philippines School of Economics (1994), graduating magna cum laude.
Dodjie Lagazo
Group General Counsel, Group Compliance Officer & Assistant Corporate Secretary
DODJIE LAGAZO is a Managing Director and heads the Legal, Governance, and Compliance unit of the ACEN group, with the Philippines, Australia, India, Vietnam, and Indonesia as the group’s key markets. In his role, Dodjie leads the development and execution of ACEN group’s corporate legal strategy, while overseeing governance and compliance programs.
Dodjie earned his Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of the Philippines – Diliman College of Law. He also holds an undergraduate degree in Political Science from the University
Miguel De Jesus
Managing Director, Philippines
MIGUEL DE JESUS is a Managing Director of ACEN and Head of Philippine Operations. Prior roles included leading the company’s solar developments in Vietnam, pioneering its retail electricity business, and managing the company’s first operating wind assets in the Philippines.
Miguel is also the Director and President of various operating subsidiaries of ACEN. Prior to joining ACEN, Miguel practiced law, with a focus on energy and project finance.
He holds a master’s degree in Philosophy from Ateneo de Manila and is also an alumnus of Harvard Business School’s Advanced Management Program. He holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Philippines, graduating cum laude.
David Pollington
Managing Director, Australia
DAVID POLLINGTON is the Managing Director of ACEN Australia, having previously been the Chief Operating Officer since its establishment in 2016. He has been involved in the renewable energy sector for more than 30 years leading projects from inception through to operations.
David has held key roles in the industry, most notably, the technical director of Renewables at SKM/Jacobs, and general manager of Construction for Roaring 40s, a joint development and asset management company between Hydro Tasmania and China Light and Power based out of Hong Kong, where he was responsible for construction activities in China, India and Australia.
David holds a Bachelor of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering degrees from the University of Tasmania and
is a fellow of the Institution of Engineers.