Dwindling power supply hounds Cebu anew

CEBU, Philippines – Power generation deficiency continues to hound the Visayas area after the 150mw High Voltage Direct Current of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines yesterday went out of the grid for preventive maintenance.

Aside from the HVDC maintenance which will last until on the 23rd, the 35mw Palimpinon Geothermal Power Plant in Leyte also remains unoperational, said Jennifer de Jesus, head of the NGCP public relations and corporate communications.

The HVDC is the grid that connects power from Luzon to Visayas. It will undergo another preventive maintenance after the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.

Antonio Labios, Department of Energy regional director, said although the HVDC and the 35mw-capacity PGPP1 is currently out in the grid, the 60mw-capacity EDC-Mahanagdong B in Leyte is already operational after months of absence from the grid.

"That's why dili na gyud kaayu daku ang power supply deficit sa Visayas," Labios said.

NGCP corporation communication officer Edna Legaspina said that yesterday's brownouts were caused by the generation deficiency that resulted to Manual Load Dropping of 81.9 mw in the morning and 87.7mw in the afternoon.

Ethel Natera, spokesperson of the Visayan Electric Company, said that as a result of power supply deficiency, they resorted to one hour rotation brownout in some parts of Mandaue City, in the towns of Liloan and Consolacion and some parts of Mabolo in Cebu City. (FREEMAN)