• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
The provincial government of Negros Occidental is tapping the University of St. La Salle in Bacolod City to formulate an Energy Roadmap aimed at ensuring power stability in the province, in the wake of the prolonged power outage in Western Visayas, particularly Panay Island, last week.
Governor Eugenio Jose Lacson met with Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez during the weekend, and discussed the conduct of an Energy Summit as well as the staging of Renewable Energy Week, among other activities.
Benitez noted that Negros Island is producing about 800 megawatts (MW) of power, of which only 400MW is being used during peak hours.
Lacson said the purpose of the Energy Roadmap is “to secure enough power for now and the future” to make sure that what happened in Panay Island will not take place in Negros Occidental.
He also revealed that an investor has expressed interest to put up an offshore wind energy plant between Negros and Panay.
The governor said that biomass power has not yet entered the grid, noting also that solar power which is abundant in Negros is “for peak load only.”
Lacson said he also agrees with the statement of the Metro Bacolod Chamber of Commerce and Industry for Negros Occidental to have its own baseload power plant. | GB
