Govt defends sale of troubled Bakun dam

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 16:46

KUALA LUMPUR: The government today defended its plan to sell the troubled Bakun dam in Sarawak, denying it was a bailout for the controversial multi-billion-dollar project. The mega-dam, which is nearing completion after nearly two decades of setbacks and delays, has long been condemned as a catastrophe for the environment and tribal people.

Lately it has also been battling suggestions it could become a giant white elephant as the government struggled to strike a power purchase deal with the only viable customer, the state government of impoverished Sarawak.

The Sarawak authorities have now offered to buy the dam, but at a lower price than that reportedly sought by the federal government, eliciting opposition criticisms that the sale is a hugely expensive bailout.

"No, this is a commercial deal," Deputy Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin told reporters.

"We will consider the actual cost (of the project) and make a decision that is beneficial to both," he said, confirming the government will proceed with the sale.

Sarawak has offered RM6 billion to acquire the dam, lower than the RM8 billion reportedly sought by the federal government.

Muhyiddin declined to confirm the RM8 billion figure, saying the price will be decided later.

"It's common when people want to buy, they will request for a lower price. I believe when we are at the decision stage, there will be a reasonable price that is accepted by both parties," he said.

Transparency International has labelled Bakun a "monument of corruption", and analysts have questioned how the Malaysian government can ever recover the money it has sunk into the project.

The dam, which involves flooding an area the size of Singapore, has been dogged by problems since its approval in 1993, and the delays have incurred large cost overruns.

The Bakun's output far exceeds existing energy needs in Sarawak, and is mostly destined for industrial users such as aluminium smelters, but these are still on the drawing board.

There has also been fierce criticism over its environmental impact and over the botched relocation of 15,000 indigenous people.

- AFP

Source: Free Malaysia Today
URL: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/politics/sabah-and-sarawak/10743-govt-defends-sale-of-troubled-bakun-dam

DAP cautions Taib about Bakun bailout

Mon, 27 Sep 2010 16:18

By Joseph Tawie

KUCHING: DAP has cautioned the state government against buying over the Bakun hydroelectric dam project without a detailed study.

Responding to Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud’s announcement that the state had offered “RM6 billion plus” to the federal government in what some have alleged is a bailout, Sarawak DAP Secretary Chong Chieng Jen said the offer was too high.

According to him, the amount is almost twice the state’s total annual revenues from natural resources such as oil and timber.

He demanded transparency from the state government, asking it to reveal how it would finance the project and at what price it planned to sell electricity generated from the dam.

“The state government is only the trustee of the people’s money; so it must comply with the basic principles of accountability and responsibility,” said Chong, who is the MP for Bandar Kuching.

News reports today quoted Taib as saying the state would offer Putrajaya up to RM7 billion for Bakun if it met some conditions.

It is said that the Federal Government is asking for RM8 billion, claiming it has spent RM7.3 billion on the project, the biggest of its kind in Southeast Asia.

Source: Free Malaysia Today
URL: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/politics/sabah-and-sarawak/10740-dap-cautions-taib-about-bakun-bailout

Solid Success – Bakun Delivers on Requirements

Monday, September 20th, 2010 GMT

News publications have been chewing over the figures as Bakun waits to be flooded and have come to some inevitable, long-predicted conclusions.

Firstly, the Dam has no genuine economic purpose. Sarawak already has more electricity than its impoverished population can afford to use and the plans to send it to Malaysia by undersea cable was a fantasy by technology-illiterate ministers.

Secondly, the dam will actually make electricity more, not less expensive for ordinary Sarawakians, as existing power plants will be shut and Sarawak Hidro are desperate to claw back some of the RM 7.3 billion costs.

Thirdly, the public worker pension funds, which were arm-twisted by politicians into funding the dam to the tune of RM 5.75 billion, are now left facing an appalling loss. This means either a whole generation of hard-working public servants (teachers, nurses, clerks, firemen etc.) will now lose their savings for old age, or the Malaysian taxpayer (the next generation of workers) will have to find the extra money to bail them out.

Pensioners’ loss is Taib family gain

Therefore the all-round conclusion has been that Bakun is a monstrous, multi-billion dollar disaster. Southeast Asia’s greatest ‘White Elephant’ foisted onto Malaysia by Sarawak’s ‘Chief Executive Officer’ Abdul Taib Mahmud. Perhaps, it is speculated, at least tourists will come to visit such an appalling example of state planning gone spectacularly wrong?

However, these commentators are neglecting to point out that from the point of view of Mr Taib’s personal finances and those of the Taib family, the Bakun Dam has been a stunning success.

Much of the RM 5.75 billion siphoned out of the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) and Kumpulan Wang Persaraan (KWAP) by this project has gone gushing straight into the Taib bank accounts – and then presumably straight on out of the country to fund their private foreign investments.

CMS saved from bad business judgements by Bakun

Researchers have long since detailed how it was the decision to revive the Bakun Dam project, after it was shelved during the Asian Financial Crash, that rescued Cayha Mata Sarawak (CMS), the business the Taib family ‘privatised’ from the state into their own pockets, in the late 1990s.

By 1999, CMS, which had over-stretched on ambitious projects, was facing terrifying losses of RM 787 million. The Chief Minister (whose late wife and two sons owned most of the shares of this ‘public’ company) was even more alarmed as the share price collapsed as a result. The ‘CEO of Sarawak’ was facing personal bankruptsy, since most of his family company’s borrowings were based on the value of these CMS shares.

So it was the political decision by the Malaysian government to pour RM 1.6 billion of taxpayers’ money into Bakun (a sum which has since escalated to 7.5 billion and rising) that saved the Taibs’ from ruin (and kept BN in power in Sarawak). Everyone knew that the Chief Minister would award his own company the lions share of the contracts for this glorious mega-project (CMS specialises in producing cement and steel) and that the company would go from strength to strength.

Endless profit to be made

The Chief Minister does not miss a trick when it comes to making money and Bakun has gone on to provide wonderful further opportunities for abuse of public trust. Thus, his own company CMS has now gone on to further establish itself as the biggest private customer of the publicly owned venture that it built.

The company has done a deal with Rio Tinto Zinc (despite the horror of environmentalists) to build a vast aluminium smelter to soak up Bakun’s excess power. This consortium is currently playing hardball with Sarawak Hidro, the Federal government body in charge of the dam, to get a preferential deal for electricity. This at a time when Taib is negotiating on behalf of the State of Sarawak to buy the project off the Federal Government.

This means clever Taib has set himself up as the biggest client of the state venture that, as Finance Minister and Chief Minister, he is going to be entrusted with managing of behalf of the interests of the taxpayer! As far as conflict of interest goes that is about as big as it gets!

Meanwhile, Sarawak Report wonders whether his business partner, Rio Tinto Zinc, has considered dusting off its own ethics book on this issue, and leafing through to the section on doing business with corrupt tyrants?

Clearly, the opportunity to move politically sensitive and highly polluting aluminium smelting plants out of Australia, where the mineral is mined, and into Sarawak is tempting. Taib, of course, plans to cover the whole of this once pristine rainforest state with filthy foreign industries to foul up what remains of the dammed up river basins – the so-called Sarawak Corridor of Energy.

However, while the Chief Minister regards himself impervious to criticism and bullet proof at the ballot box (no fool like an old fool), the business executives at Rio Tinto have learnt the hard way about the dangers of deals such as these. Their local back yard environmentalists in Australia may be happy to see them move off, but the global environmentalists will be only too ready to hold such actions to account. And the native peoples of Sarawak are not that happy either, to put it gently.

No benefit to Sarawak

Citizens of Sarawak have also learnt the hard way that the jobs from dirty industries such as these will go to foreign workers and the money will go straight back out again. They know that ’Progress and Development’ , Taib-style means environmental destruction, land seizures and poverty for the many and vast riches for….. well Taib.

All of which explains why the multi-billion dollar plan to go on building pointless dams across the whole of the rest of Sarawak, displacing tens of thousands more indigenous people and destroying vast areas, while appearing to be the strategy of a mad man makes enormous economic sense personally to Abdul Taib Mahmud.

This is because China has agreed to invest US $11 billion to do it. Most of that money he reasons will go to him and after that who cares that the people of Sarawak will be in debt to China and therefore under China’s control for ever more?

Source: Sarawak Report

URL: http://sarawakreport.org/2010/09/solid-success-bakun-delivers-on-requirements/

Dawos: Folk displaced by Bengoh dam must move

Here is another joker who say it is difficult to bring development to the Bidayuhs affected by the Bengoh Dam if they do not move to the resettlement scheme. Let me ask you Dawos, why is it not difficult to bring the dam there?

Lihan insists Baram dam a gift for Orang Ulu

September 10, 2010, Friday

MIRI: Telang Usan assemblyman Lihan Jok reiterated that the Baram hydroelectric dam project is a gift from God for the minority Orang Ulu.

“I am not ashamed to say that the mega project is a gift from God because as a result of the project the government will build a 60-km road from Long Lama to the dam site at Long Keseh, benefitting about 12,000 Kayans from nine longhouses along the river,” he said.

He said he had proposed to have a road to link all the longhouses along Baram River before the dam was even conceptualised, more as a wish for a better life for the people.

The road came into the picture when the government proposed the Baram dam, he added.

“What I am saying is that if there is no Baram dam, there won’t be any road being built. It does not make any economic sense just building a road like that. The proposed dam justifies the building of the RM500-million road,” explained Lihan.

Urging his critics to look at the bigger picture, he said the stretch of road from Long Lama made up Package B of the overall road project under Sarawak Corridor of Renewable Energy. He said the package cost the government a massive RM500 million.

Package A is the stretch of road from Beluru to Sungai Tinjar encompassing Lapok road.

The upgrading of 35.73-km Lapok road at a cost of about RM101 million commenced three days ago and is expected to be completed in three years, Lihan revealed.

“Our people who are already poor have had to buy 4WD vehicles to travel through this road, having to bear high maintenance cost due to wear and tear their vehicles were subject to. But this will be behind us three years from now,” said Lihan.

Lihan said tender for Package B of the SCORE project would close on Sept 24 and both packages would start this year.

The assemblyman urged Baram folk not to politicise the Baram dam project.

“I urge for understanding and acceptance of this mega project. The expected life-span of a dam is around 500 years. The dam will generate cheap energy for the community. Let us play a part in nation-building by accepting this project.

“Of course there are certain groups instigating the people to reject this project. In life, one has to accept challenges. If the Orang Ulu reject this project, there won’t be an opportunity like this for a very, very long time, maybe not during our lifetime on earth,” said Lihan.

Source: Borneo Post

URL: http://www.theborneopost.com/?p=65584

Sorrowful tale of Bakun evictees

S Pathmawathy
Sep 17, 10 | 12:16pm

West Malaysians are being fed "spoonfuls of sugar" but the people of Sarawak, particularly those affected by the Bakun Hydroelectric Project, are having to "chow down chillies" after having been evicted from their ancestral homes.

Telang Bengo (left), a farmer from Balui Liko, in Ulu Bakun, who toured Penang and Kuala Lumpur in conjunction with Malaysia Day celebration yesterday, lamented about the distress faced by his Kayan community following the forced resettlement of the tribe to make way for the dam.

"We live a difficult life. For those here today, it is just another public holiday but for us, Sept 16 is a reminder of all the sufferings and bitterness we have had to put up with all these years," Telang said.

"When we were asked to move from Ulu Bakun to the Sungai Asap Resettlement Scheme, they promised each family three acres of land.

"But our families have grown since 1998 and it is not enough to accommodate us all," he said.

The poor farmer recounted his story in a song, in traditional Kayan, on the disastrous effects of development on their livelihood.

Telang is touring the peninsula with several other traditional performers from Belaga to bring the plight of his community to the attention of the urban residents, in the hope the federal government will look into their welfare.

"Our soil can no longer sustain our livelihood and we have been treated like animals in our own home," lamented the 56-year-old.

The musical group comprising Kayan Cultural Association president Miku Loyang, Saran Juna, 61, a traditional Ngajat dancer and Kuit Kilah, 55, from the Penan community, had performed at an event organised by Malaysian Elections Observers Network (MEO-Net) at the Central Market Annexe last night.

Living in 'reverse development'

Speaking to reporters at the event, association member and human rights advocate Abun Sui Anyit said Sarawakians hoped the government would adhere to the Malaysia Agreement signed on Sept 16, 1963, and fulfil the promises made to Sabah and Sarawak.

"Unlike the social contract, the Malaysia Agreement is more concrete and in-depth... all we want is our rights and privileges accorded to us then to be fulfilled today," said Abun.

Malaysia Day is significant and close to the hearts of Sabahans and Sarawakians, reiterated Abun, but not for the best of reasons but for the worst.

"It reminds me of the pain and struggles for the most basic of human rights, which have been taken away from us in the name of development and modernity."

Abun said that some 10,000 indigenous people have only experienced "reverse development" as their living conditions continued to degrade everyday.

Source: Malaysiakini.com
URL: http://www.malaysiakini.com/news/142856

Bakun Dam may turn into a 'white elephant'

By Sarah Stewart

KUALA LUMPUR: The RM7.3 billion Bakun Dam in Sarawak, already condemned as a catastrophe for the environment and tribal people, is now battling suggestions it could become a giant white elephant.

The dam, which will eventually submerge an area the size of Singapore, is finally nearing completion after suffering a series of setbacks and delays since its approval in 1993.

But at the last hurdle the project has stumbled again, with delays in winning the state government's permission to begin the flooding process and no deal yet on purchasing its hefty 2,400 megawatt output.

With ambitious plans for an undersea cable to feed the Bakun's electricity to the Malaysian peninsula now abandoned, the Sarawak government is the only feasible buyer -- leaving it with a very strong hand.

Negotiations with the dam developer Sarawak Hidro, a subsidiary of the national finance ministry, have reportedly been tough.

"It's a case where the owner of the project is naming an asking price that is very different to what the buyer would want," said Wong Chew Hann, an analyst at Malaysia's top bank Maybank.

"I understand there's quite a huge mismatch," she said. "I'm not sure what they've incorporated into the pricing, but the cost of the project has gone up so much since it was started."

As well as the cost of construction, there is the expense of compensating tribal people for their forced relocation from ancestral lands, and suppliers affected by the long delays.

"So the question is, are you going to incorporate all the compensation costs in the tariff price?" said Wong.

Bargaining chip

With the indigenous people from the Bakun catchment area long since resettled and its valuable timber resources long since felled, the dam has been ready to be flooded since April.

The state government had delayed permission, saying it was still evaluating river levels and the impact on boat transport.

A Sarawak minister reportedly said last week that the necessary permit has been granted, denying both that it had been used as a bargaining chip to lower the tariff and that Sarawak was facing an energy glut.

Sarawak Hidro managing director Zulkiflie Osman played down suggestions that he has been held to ransom by the state government.

"Both parties are working together and want it to be settled amicably, with a tariff acceptable to both parties," he said, adding that he expected to strike a tariff deal before December.

The next of Sarawak's mega-dams, the Murum, which is being developed by the state government, is due to come online in 2013 but Osman said he was convinced the state authorities will not bypass Bakun in favour of its own project.

Alongside the power purchase negotiations, the federal government is also said to be discussing selling the entire Bakun facility to the state government, but pricing and finance problems have emerged.

The federal government was reportedly seeking RM8 billion while the state government offer was just RM6 billion.

Fierce criticism

The Bakun's output far exceeds existing energy needs in Sarawak, a relatively undeveloped state, and is mostly destined for industrial users such as aluminium smelters, but these are still on the drawing board.

"The main problem is that currently there is no demand for such a big capacity yet, and in order for Sarawak Energy to purchase the dam they would need adequate funding," said an analyst with a major research house.

"The banks would ask for some kind of feasibility study, and as there is no real demand yet this project risks becoming a white elephant," said the analyst, who declined to be named.

Transparency International has labelled Bakun a "monument of corruption" in Sarawak, which has been ruled for three decades by the formidable Chief Minister Taib Mahmud.

There has also been fierce criticism over the botched relocation of 15,000 indigenous people, who have made an unhappy transition to life in drab resettlement areas.

Baru Bian, chairman of the Sarawak PKR, said the Bakun project was designed purely to profit cronies, and not planned in the public interest.

"The dam is a waste of public funds, it's not necessary, and what is paramount is that it is disturbing and disrupting the lives of the natives and the environment -- the trees and the forests."

- AFP

Source: Free Malaysia Today

URL: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/politics/sabah-and-sarawak/10143-bakun-dam-may-turn-int

'No money for roads, water, but can afford Bakun Dam'

By FMT Staff

KUCHING: The tough geographical terrain and scattered population in Sarawak are not the main reason why it is difficult to develop infrastructure in the rural areas.

Second Minister of Planning and Resource Management Amar Awang Tengah Ali Hassan said the key reason is “financial constraint”.

He said both the federal and state governments are aware of the necessity to provide basic infrastructure and utilities such as water and roads to the rural areas, but their efforts were hampered by money -- or the lack of it.

“We have financial limitations. Sarawak has a vast and tough geographical terrain and sparsely populated areas is a typical scenario.

“As such, we have to carry out infrastructural development in stages and based on priorities. We have to be fair to all,” he told reporters recently.

But Awang Tengah’s admission of “financial constraints” is being viewed with sarcasm and distrust.

A local teacher, who declined to be named, urged Awang Tengah to “find a new line” to convince people.

“We have heard this story many many times before… two thirds of Sarawak is without water, electricity and roads...

“But (Chief Minister) Taib (Mahmud) has money to buy Bakun Dam and properties everywhere...,” said the teacher, referring to Taib’s announcement last week that the Sarawak government will seek to buy over the RM7.3 billion Bakun hydro-electric dam from the federal government.

'Stop lying'

The 2,400 megawatt dam is owned by Sarawak Hidro Sdn Bhd, which in turn is controlled by the federal government.

The teacher demanded to know why the state government is experiencing “financial constraints when Sarawak has ample wealth to develop itself”.

“They (federal and state governments) have taken us for a very costly ride...

"All our money in assessments and taxes have not gone towards developing this state... It has gone into personal coffers.

"The government should just stop lying to the people,” he said, referring to widely read reports of Taib’s international property portfolio worth billions of ringgit and his most recent purchases in Stampin.

The teacher said Taib and Sarawak BN have ruled for well over two decades yet two-thirds of the state lived in abject poverty with no or little decent housing, employment, sanitation and infrastructure development.

"If this was a new administration, I can accept ridiculous arguments like tough terrain... this is BN; it has everything but do little or nothing," the teacher said.

Source: Free Malaysia Today
URL: http://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/fmt-english/politics/sabah-and-sarawak/9763-no-money-for-roads-water-but-can-afford-bakun-dam