Filipino firm Alternergy has secured water permit for its 7.4-megawatt Ibulao2 run-of-river hydro power project in Ifugao province, a key government requirement for the facility to advance to its commercial development stage.
According to Eduardo Martinez Miranda, president and CEO of Ibulao Mini Hydro Corporation (IMHC) and director of Alternergy, the award of permit by the National Water Resources Board (NWRB), is a "significant milestone in the development of our Ibulao 2 run-of-river hydro power project, which forms part of our portfolio of projects in Ifugao.”
The company is already on full swing construction for its 17.4 MW Asin-Hungduan and Ibulao-1 ventures in the municipality of Kiangan (also in Ifugao), while its 6.8MW Lamut hydropower facilities in the municipalities of Lamut and Asipulo is now at its shovel-ready phase.
Alternergy noted that the Ibulao2 hydro project “will harness a portion of the flow of water from the Ibulao river” – and upon its completion, it will add up to power supply that will be delivered to the grid.
After the issuance of the proposed facility’s water permit, Miranda indicated that “further permitting activities will be pursued, particularly the consent from the indigenous peoples.”
He emphasized “in the coming months, we will commence the conduct of the activities to obtain the free and prior informed consent (FPIC) of our host indigenous cultural communities.”
Miranda acknowledged “this is a long and tedious process,” although he qualified that the company can lean on “the experience from our other projects” – for the sponsor-firm to eventually secure the consent of its host communities.
Alternergy had cast targeted portfolio expansion of 1,370MW of pure renewable energy facilities that shall be concretized within five-year span and these will be spread across technologies in the solar, wind and hydro spheres.
To partly bankroll its ongoing projects, Alternergy is scheduling its initial public offering (IPO) within this quarter and its debut at the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE) is slated on March 24 this year.
“Part of the proceeds from Alternergy’s upcoming IPO will be used to fund pre-development activities of projects in the pipeline, including the Ibulao 2 run-of--river hydro project,” the RE firm said.
As approved by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the PSE, the company is offering up to 1.150 billion in primary shares and it will be traded at the local bourse under ticker symbol ALTER.