TO SUPPORT the economic growth in the southern town of San Fernando, the Visayan Electric Company (Veco) inaugurated a substation that will cater to both the residents and business owners.
The substation, located in Barangay Panadtaran, has a transformation capacity of 12.5 megavolt ampere at 69/23 kilovolt, Veco chief operating officer Anton Mari Perdices said.
“The purpose of this substation is to provide ample and stable power to the residential and commercial power needs, as there is growth in San Fernando,” Perdices said.
The San Fernando substation provides an increase in capacity for the loads in the southernmost region of the franchise area such as the municipality of San Fernando and portions of the City of Naga.
The facility addresses the increase in demand and the rapid growth of the establishments in the City of Naga and San Fernando.
Perdices assured that the operation of the substation will not lead to an increase in the distribution rate of the residents in the area.
Veco currently has a distribution rate of P1.60.
The substation has been operating since the fourth quarter of this year.
A substation is a set of equipment that reduces the high voltage of electrical power transmission to that which is suitable for supply to consumers.
Part of Veco’s plans for next year is to build two additional substations in the South Road Properties near the Mambaling area, and in Lahug.
“It’s very important because this is basically what feeds the power lines to the residential, to the commercial, and to the industrial. This is like the hub,” Perdices explained.
Veco invested P70 million for the San Fernando substation, which occupies an area of 1,200 square meters.
San Fernando Mayor Lakambini Reluya said the substation will also supply electricity to a P3.6-billion, 40-hectare roll-on-roll-off public port that will soon rise in Barangay South Poblacion next year.
“It will usher the economic dynamism of San Fernando because of the big projects that are set to be realized here,” Reluya said.
Reluya said they won’t have a hard time looking for power needed for the construction of the port since they already have an available substation nearby.
“Because of this, it will help in the energy supply, especially that we will soon have a port that is aimed to improve passenger mobility, not only in San Fernando, but also in the neighboring areas,” Reluya said.
The bidding for the port is set on January 2019. (JOB)