Subic Bay Freeport – The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) is set to redevelop the master plan for the Redondo Peninsula after an agreement with a locator fell through, SBMA chairperson Wilma Eisma said.
By Jonas Reyes
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| photo by: IEX.nl |
The locator proposed to construct an industrial estate along with a solar farm in the area.
Eisma said that the SBMA Board of Directors decided to take a step back and called for the development of a master plan for the entire Redondo Peninsula before opening it up again to investors.
“We’re basically back to square one, because the project proponent was not able to honor the commitments under its very own proposal,” Eisma said.
“The SBMA is still open to receiving proposals though, should these be consistent with the SBMA’s objective of developing Redondo into an industrial and maritime hub,” she added.
The SBMA Board of Directors had earlier revoked the lease and development agreement (LDA) with Dynamic Konstruk International Eco Builders Corp. (DKIEBC), invoking an automatic revocation clause under the agreement in case the proponent fails to meet its obligations.
Eisma said that despite several extensions given by SBMA, DKIEBC still failed to deliver the required advance rentals and security deposit, thus leaving the Subic agency with no other recourse but to revoke the contract.
According to SBMA records, Dynamic Konstruk initially proposed in May 2016 to develop 982 hectares of land at the Redondo Peninsula, which also hosts the Hanjin shipyard and the coal-fired thermal plant project of Redondo Peninsula Energy Inc.
Calling the project “Redondo 200MW Solar Farm and Eco Dynamic Industrial City”, DKIEBC said it will devote 400 hectares of the project site to a solar-power generation farm and 582 hectares to an industrial hub.
During negotiations for the project’s 50-year lease, however, it became apparent that DKIEBC, a certified “A” PCAB licensee, as well as its partners, lacked adequate experience in solar power generation.
Eisma said the SBMA Board required a P2.2-billion paid-up capital, and DKIEBC made a counter-offer to pay upfront the amount of P472 million, which is equivalent to 50 percent of its rental and security deposits.
“When DKIEBC also failed to honor this commitment, the project was considered revoked pursuant to a resolution of the SBMA Board,” Eisma added.
As of now, the SBMA has stopped dealing with the company on the aborted project.
It had also warned the public on reports that some parties are still seeking investors to fund the project despite official revocation by the agency.
“This is already a closed issue. Anybody seeking funds for the Redondo industrial city and solar farm project is probably doing some scam operation, so we urge everyone to beware,” Eisma concluded.
Source: news.mb.com.ph