The National Commission on Indigenous Peoples in the Cordillera Administrative Region (NCIP-CAR) issued a cease-and-desist order (CDO) to Hedcor Inc.’s three run-of-river hydropower plants in Bakun, Benguet.
Aboitiz Power Corp. disclosed to the Philippine Stock Exchange on Wednesday the issuance of the CDO on June 22 was due to alleged irregularities on the Free Prior Informed Consent Memorandum of Agreement (FPIC-MOA) between unit Hedcor and the Bakun Indigenous Tribes Organization signed on October 15, 2019.
“We believe that we have been compliant with all the requirements during the course of the FPIC application process, and have been waiting for the issuance of the Certificate Precondition (CP) since the FPIC-MOA was signed,” said Hedcor’s vice president for corporate services Noreen Vicencio in a statement.
NCIP-CAR has ordered the company to cease operations of the Lower Labay Hydro, FLS Hydro, and Lon-oy Hydro five days after receipt of the CDO.