SMC, K-Water set Angat Dam rehab

San Miguel Corp. ( SMC) and Korea Water Resources Corp. ( K- Water) will start next month the P1-billion Angat Dam rehabilitation project after securing the approval of affected indigenous community, according to the National Power Corp. (Napocor).

Angat Hydropower Corp. (AHC), which is co-owned by SMC’s subsidiary SMC Global Power Holdings Corp. and K-Water, has signed a memorandum of agreement ( MOA) with the Dumagats tribe, as represented by tribal governor Salvador Cruz and tribal vice governor Norma Roque.

The MOA includes the relocation of 15 Dumagat families and provision for their houses, while livelihood programs will be provided by AHC, Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) and Napocor to the Dumagat community.

“This marks the culmination of the full circle of Free and Prior Informed Consultation (FPIC) of the National Commission of Indigeneous People (NCIP), a process required before the start of project construction scheduled this September by the private corporation Angat Hydro Corp. (AHC),” Napocor president Gladys Sta. Rita said.

AHC has earlier reported it secured an environmental compliance certificate (ECC) from the Department of Environment and Natural Resources last June and completed all the pre-construction works last July.

SMC and K-Water sealed their partnership to rehabilitate Angat Dam and the 218-megawatt Angat Hydroelectric Power Plant (AHPP) in June 2015.

AHC has tapped US-based Poyry for consultancy services on the dam upgrade.

The project is part of Angat Dam and Dyke strengthening project, which also includes the upgrade of the Flood Forecasting and Warning System for Dam Operation. The rehab project also aims to make the facility withstand a 7.2-magnitude earthquake, among others.