KWRC points at PSALM on alleged anomalies in Angat bidding

The South Korean firm that won the contract to operate the 246-megawatt hydroelectric power plant (HEPP) of Angat Dam in Bulacan province has washed its hands off purported anomalies in the bidding process for the project. In a seven-page manifestation filed with the Supreme Court on Friday, the Korean Water Resources Development Corp. (KWRC) instead pointed at state-run Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) as the rightful respondent to answer allegations of irregularities in the bidding process. “KWRC submits that it is PSALM which is best able to respond to the points raised in the petition by way of the required comment," said KWRC, which is owned and controlled by the South Korean government. Angat is the single most important water source of Metro Manila as it provides 97 percent of the water needs of at least 12 million residents in the capital and irrigates some 31,000 hectares of farms across 20 towns and municipalities in Bulacan and Pampanga. PSALM awarded the Angat HEPP project to KWRC, which submitted the highest bid of $440.8 million last Jan. 11, 2010 to operate the power plant. Under Republic Act 9136 or the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), PSALM is mandated to privatize all the assets of the National Power Corp. including the Angat HEPP. Unconstitutional But according to a petition filed by groups led by the Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC), the bidding was unconstitutional and thus must be voided. The petitioners said PSALM acted with grave abuse of discretion when it out started bidding the power plant without informing the public, and that there was no transparency in the process as PSALM allegedly refused to make public certified true copies of documents on the sale of Angat HEPP. On May 25, Chief Justice Renato Corona ordered PSALM to stop the privatization pending the final resolution of the petition. The order was later affirmed by other SC magistrates when the full-court session resumed on June 15. The Court likewise ordered the respondents to file their comment within 10 days upon receipt of the resolution. Above board KWRC, in denying knowledge of the supposed irregularities, said it merely relied on the mandate and track record of PSALM in holding public biddings and that it had no reason to question the legality of the process. The firm maintained that its participation in the process “has been guided at all times by an abiding respect for the Constitution and laws of the Philippines." It also told the Supreme Court that it was able to comply with all the requirements set by PSALM to qualify in the bidding process, including its letter of interest, a confidentiality agreement, and a non-refundable fee. While it declined to answer the issues raised in the petition, the firm urged the Court to immediately resolve the petition in order “to further strengthen and enhance the investment environment" in the country. - KBK/VS, GMANews.TV