Officials from the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) and the Negros Oriental II Electric Cooperative (NORECO II) have guaranteed a stable power supply during the May 12 midterm elections in Dumaguete City and nearby areas.
Engineer Felix Vidaure of NGCP said there will be no manual load shedding during the election period after the successful reconductoring of the 69-kilovolt (kV) transmission line in Amlan. This upgrade, completed after four weekends of planned outages, increases the line’s capacity to meet rising demand.
“With the replacement, we can cater to an additional load that will absorb the Amlan-Dumaguete 69kV transmission line,” Vidaure said.
He explained that while the reconductoring is a temporary fix, NGCP assures the public of continuous electricity before, during, and after the elections. NGCP is also deploying personnel to substations on election day as part of their contingency measures.
In compliance with the Department of Energy’s Circular 2018-050014, all maintenance and testing of power facilities are suspended a week before and after the elections unless emergencies occur.
Meanwhile, NORECO II General Manager Fe Marie Dicen said they have started coordinating with schools serving as polling centers to ensure proper setup for vote-counting machines. The cooperative is also working with local electricians, police, and military for emergency and security support.
NGCP added that in case of any power plant failure in Negros, electricity can be sourced from other Visayas or Mindanao grids.
