4Ps party-list Rep. Marcelino Libanan on Sunday welcomed the revival of the one-megawatt Amanjuray hydropower plant in Eastern Samar to help ease the province’s lingering power supply problem.
“We are counting on the hydropower plant’s restoration to help provide relief to Eastern Samar residents that have long been reeling from recurring outages and elevated electricity rates,” he said.
Libanan was among the keynote speakers at the ceremonial blessing and inauguration of the Amanjuray hydropower plant in Brgy. Bolusao, Lawaan, Eastern Samar last week.
“The Department of Energy should encourage the development of small, environment-friendly renewable energy projects in the countryside to address rural electrification,” he added.
Libanan previously represented Eastern Samar’s lone congressional district for three consecutive terms.
“There’s no question that the provision of adequate and stable electric services to rural barangays will produce greater economic opportunities for marginal families, such as those engaged in farming and fishing, and improve their quality of life,” he said.
The Amanjuray hydropower plant is a run-of-the-river hydroelectric system that harvests the energy from the flowing water generated by the Amanjuray Falls, one of the four waterfalls in the Bolusao River Watershed Forest Reserve.
With help from the United Kingdom, the National Electrification Administration (NEA) built the plant in 1991. NEA transferred the facility to the Eastern Samar Electric Cooperative, Inc. (ESAMELCO), which rehabilitated the system.