- MITCH M. LIPA
The Central Negros Electric Cooperative has sought the Energy Regulatory Commission’s intervention for the speedy repair of the high voltage submarine cable of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines along the town of Amlan in Negros Oriental.
In a resolution, the CENECO Board of Directors stated that the damaged NGCP cable causes load shedding, resulting to intermittent brownouts and high generation cost for power distributors, which in turn, pass it on to the consumers as additional charges.
Since the incident happened on June 15, 2021, the power output of the Amlan Submarine Transmission Capacity was reduce to 90 megawatts from the 180 MW full capacity output, the CENECO resolution said.
The Board of Directors also instructed acting general manager Danny Pondevilla the authority to write a letter to the ERC asking for its intervention on the problem.
Pondevilla said the ERC can order NGCP to fast track the repair of the damaged submarine cable and regulate the rate of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) in affected areas.
He added that the increase in power rate did not only affect CENECO consumers but also other electric cooperatives in Negros and Panay islands. – MML
