1M projects turned over to remote barangay

Under the Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2011 (EPIRA), ER 1-94 stipulates that host communities get a share of one centavo for every kilowatt-hour produced by power generating plants (P0.

01/kWh).

  LHC and Hedcor contribute to this fund by remitting the amount which is eventually programmed for various projects for the benefit of the host communities.

Last July 30, the Department of Energy turned over one million worth of projects to the barangay funded by the ER 1-94 contribution of LHC. Phase 1 of the Barangay Hall Construction and the Irrigation System projects are the living manifestations of the communities’ share of revenue from the operation of Bakun AC.

Alilem Mayor Mar Ruel Sumabat asserts, “It is not only the coming of the project but the very impact of the project to our barangay, we believe that these kind of projects serve and uplift the lifestyle of our people.

”The irrigation system serves about 1,000 residents in the barangay who are mainly engaged in agriculture.

  Meanwhile, Phase 2 of the Barangay Hall will be funded by the local government.

 Upon completion, it will be a great improvement from the multi-purpose hall currently housing the different functions of the barangay.

Trust accounts from barangay level to region are established to finance electrification, livelihood opportunities and initiatives on health and environment enhancement. DOE manages the administration of the projects under ER 1-94. Host communities propose projects which take about 42 working days for the fund to be released by DOE.

To fast track the implementation of the projects, LHC and its sister company Hedcor orient local government units on how these funds can be maximized. The hydro firms guide host communities from the creation of project proposal until the release of funds to ensure high approval rate of project proposals.

The Municipalities of Alilem and Bakun welcomed the construction of the run-of-river facility in 1990’s. With partnership built on trust, they gave the social license to operate the Bakun AC hydro which started operations in 2001.

To date, LHC host communities has implemented six projects amounting to 5.

6 million pesos.  An additional four DOE endorsed projects costing 6.

9 million pesos are merely awaiting the release of funds.

One of the projects awaiting implementation is the flood control in Barangay Kiat in Alilem.

 Mayor Sumabat is hopeful that by the end of this year, the flood control in Barangay Kiat will begin construction since a huge part of the rice fields near the Amburayan River are washed out during rainy season.

The ER1-94 projects are different from the other benefits given by Luzon Hydro and Hedcor to their host communities such as financial shares, taxes and corporate social responsibility projects.