Construction of another geothermal approved

By Malu Cadeliña Manar

Thursday, August 2, 2012

KIDAPAWAN CITY -- Members of this city's Legislative Council approved Thursday a resolution endorsing the construction of another geothermal power plant on Mt. Apo.

Majority of the members present during the 104th regular session approved in its finality the passage of the resolution, except for one councilor.

It took the council more than a year before they came out with a final decision to give Kidapawan City Mayor Rodolfo Gantuangco the authority to sign, for and in behalf of the City Government, a memorandum of agreement (MoA) with the Energy Development Corporation (EDC) to construct additional power plant on Mt. Apo.

Records from the City Council showed that the request for a favorable endorsement was submitted on September 16, 2010.

The letter came from the City Mayor. He attached in his document a request from Alejandro Catacutan, operations manager of the EDC Mount Apo Geothermal Production Field.

It was only early this year that Councilor Lauro Taynan, chair of the Council’s committee on energy, passed a resolution granting Gantuangco an authority to sign the MoA.

After a series of public consultations, Taynan said, the council finally passed the proposal.

So far the EDC has two geothermal power plants operating in the area, which supply at least 104 megawatts in the Mindanao grid.

Taynan said that with the approval of the resolution they expected additional 50 megawatts of power to be supplied to the grid.

"It is projected to address the power deficiency that is presently experienced by people, not only in Kidapawan City but also in other areas in Mindanao," Taynan said.

He has also cited as basis in his resolution the endorsement made by the Cotabato Tribal Consultative Council for Development, Inc., a council composed of tribal leaders in Kidapawan City, for the project to continue in the mountain’s protected area.

The MoA, which will be signed anytime, will safeguard the project as well as the parties involved, including the lumads (natives) in the area.

Based on the MoA, the EDC will extend some P42 million as infrastructure assistance to the City Government, road network development, in particular.

The company will also allot at least P1.7 million for the street lighting project to be installed from Barangay Ilomavis, site of the project, to Barangay Sudapin, this city, and another P1.7 million for a street lighting project to be distributed to remaining barangays.

The MoA also stated that the EDC will donate medical equipment to the City Government, which consist of X-ray machine, blood count machine, blood chemical machine, and an ultra-sound machine amounting to P5.7 million.

Under the MoA, a one-centavo per kilowatt hour from the Mount Apo-3 geothermal project would go to the Environmental Tribal Welfare Fund. Such requirement, Taynan said, is cited in the Environmental Compliance Certificate issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).

Published in the Sun.Star Davao newspaper on August 03, 2012.     source