Who is going to take over the 2400MW Bakun Dam baby? Initially supposed to have been completed in December 2008, it is now only expected to begin producing 300MW in three months.
Let’s look at some figures gleaned from an Edge report:
Cost of building Bakun Dam – at least RM7.5bn (+ cost overruns?)
Who will take over the ‘baby’?
- Sarawak Energy Bhd (state-owned) – initial offer RM6bn, raised to RM7bn this year?
- 1Malaysia Development Bhd – said to have offered R8bn?
- Qatar Investment Authority + firm from China – RM8.8bn?
The report cited newswire reports as saying Sarawak Hidro wanted to sell electricity to Sarawak Energy at 9 sen/kWh but Sarawak Energy wanted to take it up at only 5-6 sen/kWh to supply cheap power to smelters.
Power from the dam is supposed to be transmitted to two smelters owned by:
1) a joint venture between the Taib Mahmud family-owned Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd and BHP Billiton: capacity 330000 tonnes, and
2) GIIG Holdings and Aluminium Corp of China Ltd: capacity 550000 tonnes.
So they want cheap power subsidised by the Malaysian public/EPF loans?
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Ting Pek Khing (might) be interested.
Have not heard a squeak from Mahathir on Bakun for a long time. Another of his plan to fail legacy. Maybe Mahathir and sons can take over and show their business acumen as bragged by him sometime back.
Anil
Did Tun M mention anything about his Bakun ‘achievement’ in his memoir?
The book is too expensive at RM100, considering many has claimed that it is not 100% facts.