Thursday, March 27, 2008 Power coop official apologizes for power outage By Edmund B. Sestoso
NEGROS Oriental 2 Electric Cooperative (Noreco) 2 general manager Ephraim Taclob apologized to the public for the inconvenience caused by the long power outage to homes and business establishments in Negros Oriental last Monday.
Taclob said that as of Wednesday, the power situation has normalized. He said he was informed by Transco that the oil leakage in the 50 MVA power station in Amlan has been repaired and the plant has resumed normal operations.
A power outage hit nine towns and two cities in Negros Oriental last Monday, affecting homes and business establishments in the area.
Internet connection was also cut off in most areas, while some appliances were destroyed during the outage.
While apologizing to the public for the adverse consequences of the power outage, Taclob clarified this was not the fault of Noreco 2. He said the power cooperative was in the business of electricity distribution not generation.
In an earlier interview, Engineer Sammy Briones, Transmission Company (Transco) acting department manager, said a heavy oil leakage in one of the tanks of the 50 MVA transformer located at the Amlan Substation resulted in the power outage.
The unexpected occurrence caused the temporary isolation of the Korean-made tank of the transformer and resulted in the rationing of electricity to Negros Oriental areas.
Among those affected are the towns of Pamplona, Amlan, San Jose, Sibulan and the cities of Tanjay and Dumaguete. Other areas hit by the outage include the towns of Valencia, Bacong, Dauin, Zamboanguita, and Siaton.
Taclob, at the same time, asked consumers to allow Noreco 2 linemen to trim and cut trees near power posts.
