NIA, Daewoo to ink contract for P11.2-billion Iloilo mega dam on Sept. 3

Jalaur River Multi-purpose Project Phase II (JRMP II) in the town of Calinog, Iloilo

The contract signing between the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) and the official contractor of the P11.2-billion Jalaur River Multi-purpose Project Phase II (JRMP II) is set on Sept. 3, 2018.

Korean firm Daewoo Engineering & Construction Co., Ltd. bagged the contract for the mega dam, which will be constructed in the town of Calinog, 53 kilometers north of Iloilo City.

Ilonggo Senator Franklin Drilon, who initiated the project in April 2011, said the JRMP II would “bring back rice productivity in the Western Visayas region, spur the local economy and the eco-tourism industry, and increase employment opportunities, particularly in Iloilo.”

Aside from Drilon, officials of the NIA led by Administrator Ricardo R. Visaya and Region VI Director Gerardo P. Corsiga; and officials of the Korea Export-Import Bank (KEXIM) and Daewoo will also grace the event to be held at the NIA Building in Quezon City.

Drilon is confident that the project will improve the agricultural production in the region.

“Once completed, the first large-scale reservoir dam outside of Luzon will provide uninterrupted irrigation water supply to 32,000 hectares of farmland, benefit more than 783,000 farmers and increase annual production of rice to 300,000 metric tons from 140,000 in Iloilo,” he said.

The project is expected to generate approximately 17,000 local jobs equivalent to P1.3 billion in basic wages per year.

“I share the optimism of NIA that we can already proceed at the soonest with the groundbreaking and actual construction,” Drilon said.

“I would also like to congratulate them, particularly Administrator Visaya and Dir. Corsiga, for working hard so we can proceed with the project,” he added.

The JRMP II includes the construction of 109-meter Jalaur high dam, 38.5-meter afterbay dam, 10-meter Alibunan catch dam, 80.74-kilometer high line canal; generation of new areas for irrigation; and rehabilitation of existing irrigation system.

It was first implemented by NIA in 1960s after the fourth Congress passed Republic Act 2651, which provides for the construction of the JRMP II in Iloilo.

The first phase of the project was completed in 1980s but its second phase was derailed for over five decades.

The mega dam is funded through an P8.9-billion loan from the Korean Export-Import Bank and the rest is shouldered by the national government.

Drilon emphasized that the interest rate for the JRMP II is the lowest the country can get at 0.15 percent compared to the loans being offered by China, which is three percent interest rate.

SOURCE: Iloilo Metropolitan Times

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