news feature

Anyone who visits Telok Melano, a Malay coastal fishing village about 100km west of Kuching, is certain to hear the one thing which the villagers have turned into the butt of their joke — the failed RM12-million mini hydro-electricity dam.

While there is enough water for a gravity feed system to pipe to the 58 homes comprising of some 400 people, the streams of Gunung Melano cannot supply enough water to the small reservoir that had been built to run the turbines meant to supply 24-hour electricity to this remote Malay village in Sarawak's southernmost coastal region.

Only the federal Rural Development Ministry under its former minister Annuar Musa, and the dam consultants it appointed, could explain why the go ahead was given for the disastrous project.

One elderly villager told malaysiakini that when the project was first announced after a visit by Annuar in 1997, the villagers were full of hopes and expectations.

The speed with which the dam was completed even surprised the villagers — about one year, when according to some villagers, a project this size would take at least two to three years, and only after a thorough study had been undertaken.

When the dam was ready for commissioning, a test was carried out in 1998. When the gates of the reservoir were opened to release the water, it took only 30 minutes for the dam to run dry, giving the villagers 45 minutes of electricity, and no more after that.

There was simply not enough of water from the mountain streams flowing into the reservoir to keep the turbines running.

Plans to revive the dam

Hasnah Ahmad, an elderly villager, told malaysiakini that her family had decided not to go to haj the year when the project was about to start. Instead, they used the money to invest in a new TV set, a refrigerator and ceiling fans.

"My husband also wanted to sell off the old generator, but I stopped him," she said. "Fortunately we kept it, otherwise we would have to find more money to buy a new generator."

Now the old generator is brought back to life, but electricity it supplies is on only for six hours daily from 6pm, but a little longer when there are tourists or visitors around.

According to the villagers, some contractors visited the site about a month ago and before that Tenaga Nasional Berhad (TNB) officials had also been to the site.

According to reports, the federal cabinet discussed the matter and agreed to ask TNB to look into the project with the hope of reviving the dam.

There are several options, according to elder villagers who have entertained visiting state and federal officials.

One is to forget the dam and bring in electricity from Sematan, the nearest supply source about 20 km away, but this will mean installing overhead line across the high terrain between Sematan and Telok Melano.

Another option is to set up a diesel-run power station. "So far there is no indication that is going to happen," the villagers said.

What is likely to happen, however, is that the federal authorities are keen on rehabilitating the dam.

There has been talk, according to the kampung (village) folks, that the size of the reservoir could be increased and that additional sources of water, including from underground, will be found.

In addition to this, it is proposed that wind power could help run the turbines.

Apparently, the contractors have done a survey recently and found a spot in the area high enough to provide sufficient wind velocity all year round to power the dam.

Neglected power station

According to the man who has been employed to look after the dam's power station at the foot of Gunung Melano, the generators are still in working condition.

The dam generators are housed inside the power station building which is surrounded by a high fence. The gate is locked and so is the main door.

"But the wires inside the building have all been eaten by rats," he said.

Even the wooden bridge across the tiny stream linking the village to the dam power station is falling in a state of disrepair due to neglect. The lallang is overgrowing along the track leading to the abandoned station.

This is the story of Telok Melano and the failed mini hydro dam which has also become an occasional talking point in Sarawak.

The other infamous mini-hydro dam also built by the same ministry is at Bario, which was recently disclosed by visiting Minister of Energy, Communications and Multimedia Leo Moggie.