Ulu Padas hydroelectric project will have significant economic spillover for Tenom residents, says project director

KOTA KINABALU: The Ulu Padas hydroelectric project will have a significant economic spillover for the 60,000 people in the interior Tenom district upon completion.

Upper Padas Power Sdn Bhd project director Lim Chin Hong said the business opportunities set to be opened up by the facility were vast but did not elaborate much.

The project is also on track for its scheduled completion in 2029, he said at a media luncheon here on Wednesday (Jan 10).

Lim said the water supply aspect of the project would be completed by 2027, earlier than scheduled.

"Once it is completed, we estimate that the water supply (situation) in Sabah will (be improved) because the capacity of the dam is 6,000 megalitres per day (MLD), when the demand is only around 700MLD," he said.

Furthermore, the facility's power production capacity will meet about 15% of the state's requirements.

"In any hydro power and dam project, there is also ecotourism potential," he added.

Lim said with the reservoir's estimated 30km lakeside area and 647ha (1,600 acre) surface, there is bound to be plenty of exploration opportunities.

"The Padas River is also full of freshwater fish such as the pelian (similar to the empurau in Sarawak), so there is great potential," he added.