(Photo courtesy of Balita Halin sa Kapitolyo)
ILOILO CITY – Iloilo Gov. Arthur Defensor Jr. has called for stronger backup power capacity and the timely repair of offline generating plants as the province prepares for higher electricity demand during El Niño.
Defensor met with representatives of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines, power generators and distribution utilities to assess the power situation in the Visayas.
“We try to understand so we will know what to do. Currently, we are on yellow and red alert because power is not sufficient; we have plants that are down,” Defensor said Tuesday.
He said several generating plants are expected to return online by October once repairs are completed.
Defensor added that the Visayas may need additional supply from Luzon, although the NGCP submarine cable can transmit only up to 250 megawatts.
Additional capacity is also expected from the More Power Barge, which can provide about 80 MW and is targeted to come online in the second quarter of 2027. More supply from the coal-fired power plant in Concepcion, Iloilo, is expected in 2028.
At the provincial level, Defensor said Iloilo could further explore renewable energy, including household solar power and solar installations in government facilities.
“We can adjust where it is doable, like solar panels at the capitol and hospitals,” he said.
Defensor assured that critical facilities, particularly hospitals, should remain operational during outages because they are equipped with generators and solar systems with battery storage.
Meanwhile, Iloilo City Mayor Raisa Treñas said the city government is preparing a study on the economic impact of continuing brownouts.
The study will be submitted to the Department of Energy and the Office of the President as the city seeks possible interventions.
Treñas said the local government is also monitoring the effects of rising fuel prices on businesses, public transport operators, fisherfolk, and micro, small and medium enterprises.
The Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce of Iloilo Inc. also raised concern over recurring yellow and red alerts affecting the Visayas grid.
The group said manual load dropping and rotational power interruptions are disrupting businesses and driving up operating costs in Iloilo City.
“Businesses are paying more for electricity while also carrying the cost of repeated interruptions. This threatens productivity, employment, investment, and consumer prices,” FCCCII president Terence Uygongco said.
The business group urged energy agencies and power-sector stakeholders to speed up the restoration of unavailable generating units, provide timely outage advisories, strengthen generation and transmission capacity, and consider measures to cushion businesses and consumers from higher power costs.
“Iloilo needs a clear recovery plan with firm timelines and accountable parties. Reliable and affordable electricity is essential to protecting local businesses, jobs, investments and the city’s continued economic growth,” the group said.
Courtesy: PNA
