BAGUIO CITY – The city government is calling for public offers for the improvement, development and expansion of the Asin mini-hyrdroelectric plants.

The city council approved Resolution No. 378 series of 2009 for this purpose.

In the measure, the body also urged the creation of an Executive-Legislative and Private Mini-Hydro Development Privatization Committee composed of seven members to facilitate the conduct of public hearings, consultations and processing of offers.

The said committee would also prescribe guidelines on how interested parties may participate and make recommendations in choosing the best offer for approval by the city council and confirmation by the city mayor or vice mayor.

Mayor Reinaldo Bautista Jr. earlier announced that the city will soon issue notices to prospective companies who have the capability to operate and manage the facilities based on the terms of reference adopted for the purpose.

The mayor said the city council through Resolution No. 104-2009 granted him the authority to negotiate for the operation of the power plants to maximize the facilities’ income-generating potentials.

The resolution noted that the Czech Republic study team’s assessment revealed that the plan is economically feasible.

“Therefore the city should facilitate its privatization program since it can be proven that its further improvement and development can triple or quadruple its present capacity in the long term,” the resolution said.

They said there are many interested parties making offers for the project and they are only waiting for the guidelines and how the city will do the process of studying the best option.

“There is a definite goal of improving and expanding the capacities of the present dilapidated system which the study sets a probable cost of development and sets also the increase in capacity and estimate of production and income which is estimated to triple, quadruple or even more from the present level of the income between P18,000,000 to P20,000,000 or as the study says $2,000,000 earning in one year,” the resolution noted.

“Since the project is with a technology and there is no single standard technology, the way to get the best is let everyone who has the technology to make their offer and all that has to be done is choose among the best offers and not try to prescribe a standard which we ourselves are incapable of doing,” the measure noted. – aileen p. refuerzo