Power supply in critical condition

Cebu - Visayas is now suffering from acute level of electricity as the current supply in the Visayas grid is inadequate to meet the demand in the region, the Department of Energy said.

Based on the Power Development Plan of the DOE for 2006 to 2014, the Visayas electricity demand requirements should be addressed immediately to prevent power outages in the Cebu, Negros and Panay islands.

Stakeholders are already threatened by the looming power shortage during peak hours in the region which could result in increasing incidents of brownouts until sufficient base-load capacity is put online.

Because of this various stakeholders led by DOE conducted a two-day Energy Summit to find ways to address this problem especially after the National Transmission Corporation placed the Visayas grid under a “red alert” status indicating that the current availability capacity is inadequate to meet both demand and reserve requirements.

In a covenant of cooperation signed by the various power stakeholders, they all agreed to fully cooperate in ensuring that there will be adequate and reliable supply of electric power in the region.

“I am confident that together, we can make the scenario in the next 14 months brighter and more energized than what it purports to be,” said Edward Gaisano, president of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry. 

DOE has also passed a department circular - which was approved during the summit - that recognizes the cooperation of all electric power industry participants and various stakeholders in achieving a stable supply of electricity in the country. —Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon/BRP (THE FREEMAN)