By Jenniffer B. Austria

San Miguel Corp., the country?s largest food and beverage conglomerate, has offered to build the proposed P47.9-billion Laiban dam project in Tanay, Rizal, as part of the company?s diversification strategy.

San Miguel said in a disclosure to the stock exchange that wholly-owned unit San Miguel Bulk Water Co. Inc. made an unsolicited proposal to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System for Laiban dam.

?The Laiban dam project located in Tanay, Rizal is intended to address the long-term water requirements of Metro Manila and to provide stability and security to the water supply source,? San Miguel said.

San Miguel said it proposed a joint venture with MWSS in line with the guidelines of government-private sector partnership drawn up by the National Economic and Development Authority.

It said San Miguel Bulk Water and a foreign partner planned to forge a joint-venture agreement with MWSS to secure financing and undertake the engineering and design, construction, operations and maintenance of the project.

A company source said San Miguel Bulk Water had already selected a foreign partner for the project but declined to divulge its identity.

The dam project involves the construction of the dam and head works, raw water and treated water conveyance facilities, water treatment and hydropower plants, pumping stations, storage facilities and offtake points.

The Laiban dam project is one of those identified by Neda for joint-venture activities with the private sector.

The project aims to develop a raw water dam and other structures with a capacity of 1,830 million liters of water daily, or 22 cubic meters per second. The project is expected to benefit 5.5 million people.

The Laiban dam project has long been identified by the government and Manila Water Co., the firm that operates Metro Manila?s east zone concession, as an additional source of water for the capital?s residents. Metro Manila consumers get their water supply from a one source?Angat Dam in San Lorenzo, Norzagaray, Bulacan.

The water sector will be San Miguel?s latest non-core business after investing in power, oil and telecommunications

The company earlier acquired a 27-percent stake in power distributor Manila Electric Co. for P30 billion.