AES Boosts Growth Outlook With Renewables & Data Center Deals

Core Insights - The AES Corporation (AES) is benefiting from a diversified energy portfolio and strong long-term contracts with major customers, particularly in the data center sector, while focusing on expanding its renewable generation portfolio as a growth catalyst [1][2] Factors Acting in Favor of AES - AES is investing in renewable energy and energy storage, leveraging innovation and AI to enhance clean-energy development, and is experiencing rising power demand from AI-driven data centers [2] - The company has signed or been awarded 2.2 gigawatts (GW) of Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) year to date, including 1.6 GW with data center customers, and expects to sign at least 4 GW of PPAs in 2025 [3][8] - AES is actively retiring coal-fired units to promote clean energy adoption and aims to exit a significant portion of its remaining coal facilities by the end of 2025 [4][8] Challenges Faced by AES - The company faces declining wholesale electricity prices due to increased renewable generation, cheap natural gas, and demand-side management, which may adversely affect its financial performance [5] - AES' hydroelectric generation is sensitive to weather changes, particularly water inflows, with dry conditions in regions like Panama, Brazil, Colombia, and Chile posing challenges [6] Share Price Performance - Over the past six months, AES shares have increased by 21.5%, outperforming the industry growth of 7.6% [7]