In separate statements, the Power Watch Negros (PWN) led by its secretary general Wennie Sancho and the Utilities Consumers Advocate for Reforms (UCARE) through its convenor Roy Cordova expressed their gratitude “to the concern showed by Negros Power to the 48,000 affected homes” due to the breakdown of the 13-year-old Alijis substation facility.
“The inconvenience brought about by the recent power interruptions in Barangay Alijis and other affected areas were disruptive. But the case of a busted transformer that was the root cause of the blackout must be investigated to prevent the occurrence of the same incident,” Sancho said.
With the risk of power outages in the future, it is crucial for Negros Power to assess the aging equipment of Central Negros Electric Cooperative (Ceneco) in terms of its utility value, he added.
Sancho said that it is hard to swallow the truth that the energy infrastructure of Ceneco is vulnerable and is under maintained or its distribution lines are weak, and more likely to experience system scale failures.
This is a big challenge for the rehabilitation program of Negros Power, he stressed.
Negros Power president Roel Castro will present Negros Power’s five-year development plan before the Bacolod City Council next week.
Meanwhile, UCARE said it is “grateful to Negros Power for all the efforts done for the early restoration and reenergization of electric power for the consumers covered by the feeders of Alijis substation”.
The immediate arrival of the 10MVA mobile substation from MORE Power Iloilo and the installation and connection to the Alijis substation enabled Negros Power to solve urgently the power woes brought about by the breakdown of the aging power transformer of Ceneco, it added.
“The precision undertaken by Negros Power to restore electricity is indeed proving that Negros Power is a distribution utility that will be trusted for the supply of reliable power,” the consumer group said. ||
