Philippines NIA announces plan to bid up to 200 micro hydropower plants

MANILA, Philippines The Philippines National Irrigation Administration has said it plans to bid between 150 and 200 micro hydropower plants with a goal of increasing the country's hydro generating capacity by a cumulative 50 MW.

The projects will be bid in groups of three to five, according to an NIA official interviewed by Asian news sources last week, with each project costing at least US$1.346 million. The bidding process is reported to take place in May, allowing construction to start later this year. NIA said that the size of the proposed projects will make it possible to complete many of them to be completed within six months.

The plan is intended primarily to benefit the Philippines' isolated farming communities and will focus on installing hydropower components on existing small-head irrigation canals. The Philippines have shown a particular interest in small hydroelectric growth in recent months, with the country's 

Department of Energyapproving pre-development and development contracts for more than 20 new projects in January.

HydroWorld.com reported last May that the country is also pursuing four larger conventional and pumped-storage plants that could add an additional 1,200 MW of capacity.

http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2015/04/philippines-nia-announces-plan-to-bid-up-to-200-micro-hydropower-plants