Architect Garry Carl S. Froa, left, chairman of the Grun Architekten International construction Gruppe, Inc., based in Toshima-Ku, Tokyo, Japan and Project consultant Engr Jose D. Esparago, right, in their recent visit inside TheBunker, seat of the Bataan Provincial Capitol, pose for the ‘1bataan’ sign, indicating their intention to invest in Bataan. –Photo by Ronald F. Supnad
BENT on investing in the highly-industrialized province of Bataan, an international firm has expressed interest to fund ‘stock, lock and barrel’ the proposed $700 million 100 megawatts waste-to-energy project in the province.
In his formal Letter of Intent addressed to governor Abet Garcia, Garry Carl S. Froa, chairman of the Grun Architekten International construction Gruppe, Inc., said that “Our company GRUN ARCHITEKTEN which is based in Toshima-Ku, Tokyo, Japan (International office) and in Culiat, Quezon City (local office) in the Philippines is formally submitting a LETTER OF INTENT to fully fund your proposed 100mw Waste-to-Energy (WtE) project in Bataan.”
The WtE project being offered by Chairman Froa is a state-of-the-art technology where they can convert all forms of waste into power, fertilizer, among others.
Froa, an world-renown architect after working and personally designing sky-rise buildings, hotels, including the Philippine Embassy building in United Arab Emirates, had worked 16 long years in Abu Dhabi and Dubai, two big cities in UAE.
State-of-the-art project
“We have learned from your CONSULTANT MR. MARIO T. SUPNAD that you have had a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with AgriPower of New York headed by MR. BARRY BERMAN, for the setting up of a state-of-the art WtE project in your highly-industrialized and fast developing province of Bataan, now a first class province,” chairman Froa told Gov Garcia, “ and this has impressed us and caught the attention of our Japanese funders to fully fund the WtE project amounting to P35 billion.”
“Our company, with the full backing of a group of funders from Japan in terms of financial, technical, management among others, has in fact have the financial capability and is ready to fund such WtE which is now commonly utilized by other developed countries,” pointed out Architect Froa.
Grun Architekten is based in Tokyo, Japan and put up recently its extension office in Quezon City to serve as local office to man their billions of other investments in the country.
Froa told the governor that “Being the SOLE funder of this P35B- WtE project to be put up in your beautiful and developed province of Bataan, our company who used also to handle EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) such kind of projects, has the impeccable capability and expertise to implement it and ensure its smooth and successful implementation.”
Prior to the LOI submitted by Grun Artchitekten chairman to Gov Garcia, Architect Froa and Supnad have had a series of meetings in Manila, Pampanga and at the Bataan provincial capitol building-The Bunker, where they discussed the WtE project, Palm oil and other giant projects in Bataan.
Grateful
Gov. Garcia for his part, expressed gratitude to Chairman Froa and his Japanese funders for their trust and confidence in pouring in their investment in Bataan as he assured them of his full support and cooperation to their group.
“Please invite some more investors to invest in our province,” Gov Garcia told this writer who also serves as his consultant in appreciation of the Grun’s entry into the province.
Says chairman Froa, “Owing to this, our company intends to fully finance the P35 billion worth of renewable energy projects as being proposed by AgriPower in Bataan.”
Arch. Froa added “ that (since) AgriPower has already a track records in setting up such WtE in various parts of the World, our company intends to fully finance the required fund of the project while the technology, machineries and management will be provided and handled by AgriPower or to be jointly handled by our company, the AgriPower and Bataan province.”
The New York-based AgriPower thru its Chief Executive Officer Barry Berman, have had an earlier Memorandum of Agreement with Gov Garcia for the setting up of WtE in Bataan, after this writer worked hard and arranged it.
Renewable project
“As our company is really bent on providing the financial requirements of this much-needed WtE project, we are willing to provide ‘PROOF OF FUNDS’ the soonest possible time for said noble project in Bataan since we believe that such kind of renewable project is now the most sought after source of power being an environment-friendly and suitable to your dream of making the industrial province of Bataan pollution-free,” Froa told the governor.
“Our Japanese funders hate a lot of meetings and all they want is to implement their projects,” Froa told this writer.
“With the consent of our Board, our company is more than willing soon to discuss further with the Honorable Governor and the AgriPower about our offer to finance it in the soonest possible time,” Froa added.
