|
THE National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA)
Cabinet Committee has approved the increase in the cost of the
Northern Panay Backbone Transmission project by more than a third.
The interagency body
granted the request of the National Transmission Corp. (TransCo) to
increase the project cost by 39.11 percent to P1.9 billion from
P1.37 billion owing to higher prices of raw materials.
TransCo, which is the
implementing agency, said the project will be financed through
internal funds in case the project is not enrolled for Calyon
financing.
The power transmission
project is aimed at ensuring system reliability and operational
flexibility as well as extend transmission services to
un-electrified barangays by accommodating load growth and addressing
the load voltage problems in Northern Panay.
More specifically, the
project is designed to prevent overloading, accommodate generation
capacity additions, and improve the quality of power transmission in
Aklan and the northern part of Antique through an upgraded line and
additional substation capacity.
The project will also
provide a new distribution point for the Panay sub-grid, and prepare
affected electric cooperatives and distribution utilities in the
area for the wholesale electricity spot market (WESM).
NEDA also approved the
increase in project cost of the Metro Iligan Regional Infrastructure
Development Project (MIRIDP) to P2.03 billion from P1.51 billion.
The cost increases were
blamed on price adjustment and escalation, increase in the
quantities of other items of work, physical contingencies, changes
in alignment of Road Segment 2, addition of alternative fuel
investment project, among others.
The MIRIDP provides
off-site infrastructure support for the Metro Iligan Regional
Agro-Industrial Center (MIRAIC), one of the industrial estates
identified in the Cagayan de Oro—Iligan Corridor Area Development
Zone.
The project was originally
scheduled for implementation over a six-year period to be
implemented by the provincial government of Lanao del Norte.
The approved schedule
covered the period 1998 to 2003, while the loan agreement period
covered the period 2000 to 2005, which was subsequently revised to
run for the period 2003 to 2009.
--Darwin G. Amojelar
|
