Abacus in P60-billion rival bid for Laiban Dam

MANILA, Philippines - Publicly-listed Abacus Consolidated Resources & Holdings Inc. said yesterday it has submitted an unsolicited proposal to develop the Laiban Dam as an alternative source of water for Metro Manila’s households at a cost of P60 billion, rivalling an earlier offer made by diversifying conglo-merate San Miguel Corp.

In its disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Abacus said the joint venture proposal, which was offered to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System, involves the construction of the Laiban Dam in Tanay, Rizal to supply Metro Manila around 1.9 billion liters of water per day and supply the irrigation requirements of the agricultural sector of neighboring areas.

Abacus also seeks to build a 30-megawatt hydropower plant to alleviate the projected power supply shortage for the Luzon grid, which is expected to incur a supply deficit of 3,000 MW by 2013.

The proposed project also involves low-cost housing for families to be displaced by the construction of the dam, which will be completed within 60 months from start of construction.

Abacus, owned by a group of businessmen led by Hermilando Mandanas, has tapped Sinohydro Corp. Ltd. of China as its partner for the Laiban Dam project, a pro-government initiative that seeks to prepare for the inevitable deterioration of the only water source for Metro Manila - the Angat Dam.

Sinohydro, a company registered in the People’s Repubic of China, is mainly engaged in water conservation and hydropower industries, building, civil infrastructure, mechanical and electrical plant manufacturing and installation. It has been the backbone of China’s efforts to harness and develop rivers accounting for 70 percent of China’s water conservation canal and irrigation water treatment and water supply projects. 

With a manpower of 130,000, Sinohydro had total assets of $2.14 billion as of end-2009.

The Angat Dam in Bulacan, which provides 97 percent of the water requirements of Metro Manila households, needs at least 50 milliliters of rainfall daily for a month to raise its level to the critical boundary. West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. said Metro Manila may go waterless by September if the situation does not improve at Angat.

San Miguel, which has been moving away from its traditional food and drinks businesses, early this week was reported to have revived its plan to develop and operate the Laiban Dam despite the controversies surrounding the proposed project. 

It would be recalled that in March, the MWSS terminated talks with San Miguel over the Laiban Dam project, citing technical and legal issues without specifying what those issues were.

San Miguel Bulk Water Co. Inc.’s P50-billion proposal would have provided 1,900 million liters per day of water, enough to supply Metro Manila with adequate water for the next 30 to 40 years. The proposed project, however, drew criticisms from various sectors, including farmers and environmentalists, because of its “take or pay” scheme.

Abacus is also part of the consortium that submitted an unsolicited proposal to construct the $1.2-billion Batangas-Manila natural gas pipeline.