The Energy Department said it received six proposals from different companies to develop big hydro power projects harnessing Laguna Lake.
Energy Department director Mario Marasigan told reporters that Laguna Lake, the country’s largest freshwater lake, could host five projects with a total capacity of 2,000 megawatts.
“There are proposals for pumped storage [power projects] using the lake….Right now we have accepted six proposals. That means service contracts applications over Laguna Lake,” Marasigan said.
He said the proposals came from local companies such as Phinma Energy Corp. (formerly Trans-Asia Oil and Energy Development Corp.) and Citicore Power.
“All of these projects would be pumped storage.They will pump water of the Laguna Lake upward then if they need to generate they will also release the water there,” Marasigan said.
He said the proposals were to develop power projects with a capacity of 400 MW to 600 MW each, depending on tfeasibility studies. These would be located in Tanay and Pililla in Rizal province or towns in Laguna.
Marasigan said the government was studying if the lake could accommodate more power projects. “At the end of the day…can the lake accommodate it? Is there sufficient water?” he asked.
Marasigan said Laguna Lake currently hosts the Kalayaan pumped storage hydro project with a capacity of 342.3 MW in Laguna operated by CBK Power Co. Ltd. under a build-rehabilitate-operate-transfer agreement with National Power Corp.
The Kalayaan pumped storage project lies along the eastern part of Laguna Lake and utilizes excess power at times when there is low power demand to pump water from a lower reservoir (Laguna de Bay) for storage in an upper reservoir (the Caliraya Reservoir) at night.
The stored water in the upper reservoir is released during times of high power demand and used to generate power as it returns to the lower reservoir.
Marasigan said there was now strong interest in the Laguna Lake hydro power development projects as a result of the passage of the Electric Power Reform Industry Act of 2001 and the Renewable Energy Law of 2008.
“It requires huge investment. Before the RE Law, it was NPC only who has exclusive authority to develop our water bodies for power development. There was no private sector. It’s only after Epira and RE Law where there is direct private participation in large hydro,” Marasigan said.