Oro folk, businesses still lucky despite Mindanao blackouts
-A A +AFriday, October 12, 2012
RESIDENTS and business establishment owners alike are still lucky not to experience rotational brownouts already implemented by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) in most key areas in Mindanao.
The blackouts are the preventive maintenance shutdown of Steag State Power Inc., operator of coal-fired power plant based in Tagoloan and Villanueva towns in Misamis Oriental.
Reports said Cagayan Electric Power and Light Company Inc. (Cepalco) has alternate power sources to spare the city from power curtailment done in the provinces of Agusan del Sur, Butuan City and some areas in Northern Mindanao.
Reports added Cepalco has available diesel power plant by an independent power producer, Minergy, which can ably supply the need of residential houses and business establishments.
Earlier reports said the Cagayan de Oro Chamber of Commerce and Industry Foundation Inc. (OroChamber) has assured its member-companies that rotational brownout would be far from being implemented in the city because of Cepalco’s back-up energy source.
But Cepalco management calls on public to be conscious of preserving energy despite the power distributor’s available alternate source.
“If we could not draw all the curtailment level set by the NGCP, it eans (a lot of help) to other areas (experiencing rotational brownouts),” Marlyn Chavez of Cepalco said over a television interview.
The NGCP, accordingly, has implemented two-hour daily power curtailment in Agusan and Butuan that operation of some manufacturing plants have to shut down.
Reports said Mindanao ran out 20 percent of power supply following the 210-megawatt (MW) coal-fired power plant’s forced shutdown.
“It’s like a man went to a doctor for checkup. The doctor has to check him if he’s still able and to be able to be of service,” Jerome Soldevilla of Steag State Power said of the independent power producer’s month-long power plant shutdown from October 6 to November 10.
Mindanao’s power demand is at 1,100 MW. But with Steag’s first-ever power plant shutdown, the power generating capacity in the entire island was reduced to 974MW causing the current power shortage, a separate report said.
Reports also added rotational brownouts may last until 2015.
Published in the Sun.Star Cagayan de Oro newspaper on October 13, 2012.
Business
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