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The coal ash facility will still rise at the controversial Balili property in Naga City, southern Cebu.
The Korean Power Corp.-Salcon Power Corp. (Kepco-SPC) doesn't have plans to rescind the memorandum of agreement (MOA) with the provincial government on the construction of the coal ash dump facility in barangay Tinaan, Naga.
Lawyer Guillermo Dabbay Jr., Kepco-SPC spokesman, said they were still looking ?forward to continue with the MOA? despite the ongoing investigation on the 24.7-hectare beach front property, bought by the province at P98.9 million which turned out to be partly underwater.
He said he was aware of the probe being conducted by the Office of the Ombudsman-Visayas on the irregular land purchase.
?Whether we fear that the purchase will not be cleared, nobody knows that yet. We just hope the purchase is cleared up. (But) we intend to comply with the provisions of the agreement,? he added.
If the purchase of the lots will be nullified, Dabbay said the Kepco-SPC would have to look for other options such as a possible agreement with a cement company.
But one thing is certain, Kepco-SPC will have to look for a facility where it can dump its coal ash that will be coming from its power plant, which will be operational in 2011. A coal ash dump facility is also a requirement for Kepco's $120-million loan from the Asian Development Bank for the construction of a 200-MW coal-fired power plant in barangay Colon, Naga.
Dabbay, however, stressed the firm was confident that the MOA with the Capitol would proceed.
Under the MOA, the province will build an Ash Disposal Landfill Facility where Kepco-SPC will dump its coal ash at a cost of $1 per metric ton. The contract with Kepco will run for 25 years but the dumping fee will be subject to a 10-percent escalation every five years thereafter.
The Korean firm pledged an advance payment of $1 million to the province, which will be deducted from the province's collectibles from Kepco-SPC.
A check of $500,000 was released to Gov. Gwen Garcia after the signing of the MOA in July. Another $300,000 will be paid after the province issues a Notice to Proceed to Kepco's contractor. The remaining $200,000 will be paid in January 2011 during the start of the actual dumping of coal ash.
Environment lawyer Benjamin Cabrido said the province should have asked for more from Kepco-SPC because if all the environmental standards will be followed in the disposal of the coal ash, the dumping fee should be $10 per metric ton and not a measly $1 per ton.
?The $1 will not be enough because if they plan to have an operating facility that is compliant with the standards such as setting up liners, a cement pond and conduct monitoring of the aquifer or ground water. The Cebuanos will be short changed,? said Cabrido.
Cabrido said lawyers and environmentalists will focus their protest actions on the Capitol's plan to construct a coal ash dumping facility on the Balili property.
?We do not mind, for now, if Kepco will continue with its project. (For us) it is up to the provincial government to rescind the MOA,? he said. ?Did the government study the (operations of a) ash disposal facility? This (project) should not be accepted hook, line and sinker.?
Cabrido said environmentalists would also expose the environmental impact of coal ash to the environment and the public health.
Environment lawyers wrote to Garcia objecting to the Capitol?s plan to use the Balili estate as a waste disposal facility for coal ash from Kepco-SPC power plants which were being constructed in Naga.
The issue, primarily focused on the threat of pollution, led to the surfacing of other documents that indicated the land purchase was irregular because some lots were submerged in seawater or classified as timberland and therefore could not be titled or sold.
Capitol officials first insisted the land purchase was all above board, while the governor dismissed the critics as ?hypocrities.?
A survey conducted by the Capitol later showed that 9.4 hectares worth P38.7 million were submerged under water and planted with mangroves.
But the Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Central Visayas (DENR-7) has recommended the reversion of the titles of eight lots covering about 20 hectares out of the 24.7-hectare property because these were coastal timberlands.
Garcia formed a seven-man fact finding team headed by lawyer Medardo de Lemos, director of the National Bureau of Investigation in Central Visayas (NBI-7) to ?get into the bottom of the Balili land deal.?
The Office of the Ombudsman in the Visayas has also conducted its own fact finding probe on the irregular purchase of the property.
The Provincial Board is also conducting its own inquiry in aid of legislation. The adhoc committee had held two hearings already. A third was scheduled today.
Acting Gov. Greg Sanchez said only members of the Provincial Appraisal Committee and Provincial Legal Officer Marino Martinquilla would attend the hearing today.
Board Member Juan Bolo, who helped facilitate the deal, was in Dapitan.
?Whatever will come out of the hearing, we will continue it on Monday,? said Sanchez.
Dabbay assured that the company would address coal ash disposal in compliance with existing environmental laws.
?We will have a coal ash handling program for the facility,? he said.
Dabbay said the 200-MW coal fired power plant in Naga is a joint venture between Kepco Philippines Holdings, Inc. and Salcon Power Corp. Kepco holds the majority share at 60 percent.
He said the the project was identified as a solution to the intermittent blackouts experienced by Cebu and neighboring provinces of Negros and Panay due to shortage of power and ?hopefully? create a beneficial consumer environment.
?We can expect lower electricity rates if we have abundant supply of power,? he added.
The two units will supply 100 MW each. Both are under construction on a reclaimed area previously owned by National Power Corporation. The new plant is right across the existing plant which SPC is co-managing with Napocor.
Dabbay assured that Kepco-SPC would use an environment-friendly technology, which the firm was also using in the 1,300 units it had put up in other countries.
Some of these plants were located near residential areas, he added.,
The technology uses limestone injections into the combustor which according to Dabbay significantly reduces Sulfur emission as well as reduce formation of nitrogen oxide as the combustor operates at low temperature of 750 degrees to 950 degrees centigrade.
Aside from supplying more power for Cebu, the project can also generate business opportunities for limestone suppliers.
?We are also open to negotiate with cement factories since coal ash is an excellent additive for cement. In Donghae, Korea, cement factories are located near our plant and we even just give the coal ash for free,? Dabbay said.
Environmental lawyers, however, said the coal ash dump project is hazardous because coal ash has radioactive elements and contains toxic substances such as mercury, lead and arsenic.
The group also took noted that the Environment Impact Statement submitted by KSPC to the Asian Development Bank (ADB) recognized that cancer, heart and upper respiratory ailments are prevalent among people living near the coal power plant.
