Aboitiz unit, LGUs ink MOA on Binga hydropower rehab

MANILA, Philippines - In line with transparency issues on the state of water dams in the country, SN Aboitiz Power-Benguet Inc., a unit of Aboitiz Power Corp. (APC), yesterday signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with local government units and community groups on the monitoring of the Binga hydropower plant rehabilitation and refurbishment project.

In a statement, SNAP-Benguet chief executive officer Emmanuel V. Rubio said the agreement is in compliance with existing rules.

“The formation of the multi-partite monitoring team (MMT) implemented through a MOA is a condition under the environmental compliance certificate (ECC) and a key feature of the Philippine environmental impact assessment system,” he said.

“SNAP-Benguet has always been conscious of its responsibilities,” he added.

Rubio also emphasized that this collaboration among the private sector, government sector and community organizations through the MMT framework is the “best possible action that will leave all those involved in a win-win position.”

The rehabilitation and upgrading project for the 100-megawatt Binga plant started this year will hike the plant’s capacity to 120 MW by 2014.

The MMT’s key role is to monitor the project in terms of compliance with the conditions of its ECC.

For his part, DENR-CAR regional executive director Clarence Baguilat lauded the wider participation of stakeholders in the project monitoring, signifying “good governance” and “transparency.”

Environmental Management Bureau Regional Director Paquito T. Moreno Jr. likewise said the MOA signifies critical collaboration between the MMT and SNAP-Benguet toward uplifting the “environmental conditions of host barangays and impact areas.”

The MMT-MOA requirement began as a post-ECC requirement when government was devising a mechanism to resolve social and environment implications of major projects in 1991.

SNAP-Benguet is a joint venture between SN Power of Norway and the Aboitiz Group. The company also owns the 75-MW Ambuklao power plant in Benguet which is also undergoing rehabilitation.