HidroAysen issues Corporate & Social Responsibility Data On Studies for Five Plants in Chile

[14 January 2008] The HidroAysen venture today issued the data on its corporate and social responsibility (CSR) (have they seen the protests?) studies for its proposed five hydropower projects in Chile that would have combined installed capacity of 2,750MW.

More than US$6M was spend on the CSR studies by HidroAysen, which is a joint venture of two leading energy companies in the country – Endesa Chile (51%) and Colbun (49%).

The studies were undertaken over 2006-7 and approximately 187,000 hours of work were investigated in the research undertaken by 370 specialists to investigate socio-environmental and economic issues, it said in a statement.

(See the details regarding Endesa's social responsibility in its last large hydroelectric project in Chile:

Endesa Strategy & Tactics I – Revisiting the Ralco & Pangue Hydroelectric Projects on the Rio Bio Bio

Switch Off - 2004 Documentary of the Mapuche struggle against the international energy conglomerate, Endesa SA

Damming the Biobio River - Journeyman Pictures )

Public review of the information, data and methodology will be possible at a series of centres already set up for public consultation on the scheme. HidroAysen hopes to commence the procurement process from 2009 and construction is targeted to be completed eight years later.

(Vistors to these same centers are complaining they have no access to the documents:

Hydroaysen Keeping Public in the Dark, Say Chile Dam Critics )

The overall scheme consists of five plants on two rivers – two on the Baker river and three on the Pascua river – with annual average electricity production of 18,430GWh. All five schemes would require reservoirs to be built.

(More on HydroAysen here:
http://patagonia-under-siege.blogspot.com/2007/11/damming-rio-baker-pascua-in-patagonia.html )

Here is the full article.