Push to save US$650mn Peru irrigation project could get green light this week

An amendment to unblock Peru’s Majes Siguas II irrigation project could be sealed this week if no councilors in Arequipa region decide to challenge last week’s vote to approve the contract modification.

Any councilor who wants to challenge last week’s vote will have until Thursday to do so. Otherwise, Arequipa governor Kimmberlee Gutiérrez will be cleared to sign the modification with concessionaire Angostura Siguas, daily La República reported.

However, people close to the US$650mn project have warned that this will not mean an immediate restart of work on Majes Siguas II, which has been halted for four years.

Last month, a representative from Grupo Cobra, Angostura Siguas’ parent company, told the Arequipa council that works would not be fully resumed until around five months after the amendment is signed. 

The contract amendment involves a modification in irrigation technology. 

Previously, Cobra had asked for the contract to be terminated because of the delays in the approval of the amendment, which could have dragged Peru into a costly arbitration process. 

The project involves a dam with capacity of 1.1Bm3, two main diversion tunnels (of 11km and 16km), a distribution network and a 513MW hydroelectric plant.