City to rebid Asin mini-hydro project

By Aileen P. Refuerzo

BAGUIO CITY – The city government will rebid the Asin mini-hydroelectric plant operation and rehabilitation before the end of the month.

Mayor Mauricio Domogan and city budget officer Leticia Clemente who heads the Special Bids and Awards Committee confirmed this last week following the failure of the first bidding conducted last Jan. 27.

The first canvassing was nullified as no company was able to satisfy the requirements set under the terms of reference for the project.

Six companies served intention to participate in the bidding but only Benguet Electric Coop. Inc. tendered an actual offer.

However, the firm was disqualified for failing in some requirements including its lack of registration with the Cooperative Development Authority.

Clemente said all interested firms including Beneco can join the rebidding.

As this developed, the SBAC denied the motion filed by Beneco for reconsideration of the committee’s earlier decision declaring the power firm as ineligible to participate in the bidding.

“The Committee resolves to deny the motion as the ground raised are unmeritorious. The committee does not see reason to stretch out the explicit provisions of the Terms of Reference and the provisions if law on bidding,” the committee noted in Board Resolution No. 2 series of 2012 issued Feb. 14 where it added that it has no authority “to modify, alter or revoke any provision on the (TOR).”

Clemente said the SBAC declared Beneco ineligible to participate in the bidding process, “using non-discretionary pass/fail criteria.”

The power firm on Feb. 2 filed a motion for reconsideration justifying its position and qualifications. It said the basis for disqualification was “harsh and restrictive.”

The power firm also said the CDA registration “is irrelevant and immaterial to power generation which is highly technical and capital intensive.”

It cited its efforts in submitting a carefully studied bid beneficial to both the city and residents and that it came prepared complete with all its books and that it was “given the window to file its bid when the city mayor allegedly approved its appeal to be allowed to participate in the bidding.”

The mayor said the requirement for CDA registration may be disregarded because if Beneco cannot qualify as a cooperative, then it can still join in as a legal entity existing under its own charter.
“But as it is, I was informed that other than the lack of CDA registration, there are other bases for Beneco’s disqualification and not only the CDA requirement,” he said.

The Asin minihydro rehabilitation and operation is a priority project of the city government which aims to maximize the power generating potential of the plants and restore their viability.

Based on the TOR, the bid components will be for the rehabilitation and rental under the conditions that the operator shall invest a considerable amount of money for the rehabilitation, upgrading and expansion of the plants to produce 41,406,178 kilowatthours, install independent substation and power line to the national grid.

The terms also provided the schedule of remuneration to the city government and other concerned parties including the provincial government of Benguet, municipality of Tuba and barangays Tadiangan and Nangalisan where the plants are located and including the surface owners whose properties are affected by the pipelines and plant facilities.