BUTUAN CITY, Philippines – The effort of the city government here and the local business group on public-private-partnership finally bared fruit Wednesday afternoon when a Japanese firm and three local business firms inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to construct run-to-river mini-hydropower plants in this region’s frontier and capital city in the Caraga Region.

The setting up of multi-million-peso run-to-river hydropower plants in this city will be a big boost to the national government’s Mindanao power generation program for 2012 and beyond, business analysts here said.

The signing of MoU at a hotel and convention center was witnessed by city officials led by Mayor Ferdinand M. Amante Jr. and Vice Mayor Lawrence Fortun; Yuji Munehiro, general manager of business planning division/business promotion group Toe (traffic operations engineer) of the CHODAI, Co., Ltd.; Satoshi Kato, manager, business planning and development division; Motohide Takano, vice-president of the Twinpeak Hydro Resources Corporation (THRC); Hendrick R. Menegdeg, president of the Hydro Resources Management and Consultancy, Inc.; and other local business leaders.

Signatories of the MOU include Ronnie Vicente C. Lagnada, chief operating officer of the Equi-Parco Construction (EPC) Company, and Director Akinori Ido P.E. Jp. of CHODAI, Co. Ltd., a “Kabushiki Kaisha” group based in Chuo-ku, Tokyo, Japan.

Under the MoU, the EPC, CHODAI, and THRC agreed to initially establish run-to-river mini hydropower plants in the Taguibo and Asiga rivers here.

The Japanese and local partners also agreed to help one another to establish two power plants producing 2.4 megawatts and 2.6 megawatts in Taguibo River, and another eight megawatts in Asiga River.

Under the MoU, the parties agreed for the grant of an exclusive right to explore, develop, operate, manage, and utilize hydro power resources in the said rivers.

“This power project in Butuan is a big help to Butuanons, and also a plus factor to the growing industries in this part of Mindanao. This is also a big support to our national government’s power generation in Mindanao,” said businessman Ronnie Vic Lagnada.

“We are looking forward for the realization of these projects here in the Philippines,” also said Ido, along with his interpreter, during the signing of the agreement.

Last month, the EPC and CHODAI already entered into certain non-disclosure agreement (NDA) for the realization of the said project.

Also, the public-private-partnership (PPP) projects with the Japanese group was strengthened after city officials led by Amante presented more than 10,000 hectares of investment possibilities for co-management project here during the Tokyo business and investment forum last month, where the Research Center for PPP Toyo University also presented PPP possibilities for the future of this city.

“The signing of this hydro power projects in Butuan City is a big breakthrough where the Japanese group responded to our business opportunities here and we are expecting more foreign investors with PPP projects in the coming years,” stressed Amante.

He also expressed his heartfelt gratitude to the Lagnada group for initiating the PPP program between the governments of Japan and Butuan.