Napocor invests P30M in Romblon power projects

The National Power Corp. (Napocor) has invested about P30 million for its power expansion projects in Romblon.

The state-run power agency said this is part of it’s commitment to energize remote areas with the installation of 1,500 kilowatts (kw) of new capacity in two small islands in Romblon.

The company said its technical and maintenance services (TMS) group has completed the 1,000-kw expansion of the Sibuyan diesel power plant (DPP) in Sibuyan Island and the 500-kw expansion of the Corcuera DPP in Simara Island earlier this month.

In his report, TMS vice president Katambayan S. Celino said the installation of two 500-kw generator sets at the Sibuyan DPP will nearly double the dependable capacity of the plant from the previous 1,330 kw.

“This translates to a higher peak reserve, which is badly needed in view of the age of the existing units, some of which are already more than 10 years old,” he said.

Celino said the Corcuera DPP expansion project, on the other hand, will beef up the rated capacity of the power plant by “more than double”, or from 326 kw to 826 kw.

Napocor has earmaked about P15.6 million for the Sibuyan DPP and the remaining P14.2 million for the Corcuera DPP.

Both projects involved the expansion of existing powerhouses, the installation of additional generating sets and the supply of balance-of-plant equipment.

Romblon Electric Cooperative, Inc., the sole power distributor in the province, undertook the Sibuyan DPP expansion project under the supervision of the project management department of TMS. Bendimil Construction and Development Corp., meanwhile was the contractor for the Corcuera DPP expansion project. All three gensets were supplied by Kanbutzu-CXZ.

Apart from Sibuyan and Corcuera DPP, Napocor owns and operates five other generation facilities in Romblon, the Romblon diesel power plant, Power Barge 114, Banton DPP, Concepcion DPP and San Jose DPP.