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Davao was to have been experiencing power shortage, but this is expected to ease up once the establishment of a new hydropower plant will be finished. The hydropower plant project, which will utilize Tamugan River, will be undertaken by the Aboitiz-owned Hedcor Inc.

The company was able to forge a compromise agreement with the Davao City Water District (DCWD) that would allow the power firm to establish the said power generation facility in Tamugan River.

Hedcor will generate 15 megawatts (MW) from the said project, the initial proposal though was to generate 27.5 MW. Hedcor and DCWD reached a compromise because the water firm also utilizes the same river. The power company will tap 400 meters below the surface water development project site of the DCWD.

The compromise finally allows the resumption of the long-stalled project which was expected to provide stable power and water supply in the city. Hedcor was reported to review and redesign its entire infrastructure for the project as the original plan was for two hydroelectric plants that would generate a total of 27.5 MW.

The power mix in Mindanao is more than 60 percent hydropower and is largely dependent on Lake Lanao and Pulangi River in Bukidnon as its main sources. Low water levels in both Lake Lanao and Pulangi River have brought the power generation deficiency to as much as 750 megawatts for Mindanao.

Before Hedcor and DCWD came to a compromise the hydropower plant project, former Energy Secretary Angelo Reyes said that there were no clear solutions yet to the looming power crisis in Mindanao. He said, “Right now, assessment is still being done as to the extent of the need for generators and what would be done best for Mindanao.”

Meetings were held among various stakeholders in Mindanao, government and private sector alike, to find solutions to the worsening power generation deficiency in Mindanao, according to Reyes.