INFUSING A NEW KIND OF ENERGY IN THE CORDILLERAS
September 5, 2019
COHECO Chairman Xavier ‘Eckie’ Gonzales performing the cañao ritual with members of the Kankanaey tribe in Kibungan, Benguet, last June 25, 2019.
Long exploited for its natural resources, the Cordillera region is being infused with a new kind of energy that respects the environment and cares for the proud, indigenous peoples who populate the mountain range in the Northern Philippines. The Cordillera Hydro-Electric Company (COHECO), headed by its President Xavier ‘Eckie’ Gonzales, is developing a site that straddles the towns of Kapangan and Kibungan in Benguet for its US$200 Million run-of-river clean energy project. It has appointed GHD as Owner’s Engineer, providing technical advisory, project management, construction monitoring, and supervision services. The strong partnership, with a shared vision of not just providing clean energy but also uplifting the lives of the indigenous peoples, has resulted in COHECO’s project being named Best Hydropower Project of the Year at the Asian Power Awards 2019.
A run-of-river energy project is one of the cleanest power-generating projects available today because it uses the river’s natural flow to drive turbines that generate electricity. Currently, COHECO has the largest single run-of-river facility being set up in the country, set to generate enough power for an estimated 60,000 Filipino homes. “With the help of GHD, we are better able to bring development opportunities and economic growth,” says Eckie Gonzales, President and Chief Executive Officer of COHECO. For his part, Darren Shrives, General Manager of GHD in the Philippines, shares that the Asian Power award “reflects our commitment to create value for our clients, our employees, and the communities that benefit from our work.”
Beyond generating clean energy, COHECO has taken the extra step of infusing new energy in the communities within which it operates, helping mainly the Kankanaey tribe who populate the area. “For far too long, the needs of the people have been neglected, even as various companies have come to exploit the natural resources of their communities,” said Eckie Gonzales. “By partnering with them and working with them to protect and rejuvenate the natural environment, we can generate energy that not just powers villages, but empowers the people living in them.”
The Amburayan River in Kapangan, Benguet, site of COHECO’s 60MW run-of-river clean energy project.
COHECO will generate 60 MW of clean energy by tapping part of the Amburayan River which is located in a region known as the watershed cradle of Northern Philippines. Instead of a dam, COHECO will set up a weir designed to maintain the 0.8 cubic meter-per-second water threshold set by the National Water Resources Board. This allows the river to maintain a constant, natural flow downstream. “Beyond the economics of power generation,” says Gonzales, “we seek to materially elevate the economic and environmental foundation of Benguet. We will protect watersheds and look after the region’s biodiversity. And we will work hand-in-hand with the people to preserve their rich, cultural heritage.”
By end 2019, COHECO will have finished planting 52,600 forest and fruit trees—120,000 by 2023. In addition, COHECO is working with local farmers to develop a sustainable coffee venture by planting high value arabica trees together with pine trees, allowing the mountains to recover from years of deforestation.
The on-going construction of roads, generation of jobs in the local communities, and recognition and respect for the tribal culture has been greatly appreciated by the indigenous people. COHECO secured free and prior informed consent (a requirement of Philippine law) from the indigenous peoples in 2015. Peter Begawen, a tribal elder of the Kankanaey tribe in Kapangan, shows off the vehicles they received from the company, explaining that these have been useful in situations ranging from bringing people to the hospital to sending supplies to the communities.
Indeed such is the hope of the indigenous people that they literally wrote songs about COHECO at a cañao—a ceremony to celebrate progress and give thanks—last June 2019. While there, Albert Mayamnes, former mayor of Kibungan, shared that “with the coming of Eckie Gonzales and an all-Filipino management team of COHECO, we feel that our hopes and aspirations for our people and our homes can finally come true.”