Hela govt signs with Chinese company

The National National

THE Hela government has signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with a leading power company from China to develop a 160-megawatt hydro-electricity project along the Tagali River in the province at a cost of between US$300 million (K1bil) and US$500 million (K1.7bil).
The agreement was signed in Port Moresby on Saturday on the sidelines of the 26th Apec Leaders’ Summit by Hela Governor Philip Undialu on behalf of his government and the Tebian Electric Apparatus Stock Company Ltd (TBEA Group) represented by chairman Zhang Xin.
TBEA is the contractor of the 132Kv high transmission lines from Mt Hagen in Western Highlands to Tari in Hela .
Undialu said the national government had already made a decision and funded the main transmission lines and it would not make sense to build 200km transmission lines costing K400mil to a place where there was no power generation.
“I take this infrastructure as a golden opportunity for Hela to tap into its hydro and gas-fired power generation potential,” he said
Undialu said the MOU was just a general understanding to work together to:

  • Review a hydro feasibility study and design done in 2013 by the late Governor Anderson Agiru;
  • Review technical details; and
  • Start discussions with potential customers like PNG Power and existing and new mine operations such as Wafi-Golpu, Frieda River Mine, Porgera Mine, Mt Kare, Ok Tedi, and others.

“This is an important occasion that marks an ambitious journey of providing cheap, reliable and clean energy using renewable sources like hydro. So we are pleased with the proposal from TBEA for financing, planning, design and construction of the Hela hydro-power project,” he said.