By Christine Fabro
The national government has begun taking measures to address the issue on power shortage in Occidental Mindoro.
This, as the Occidental Mindoro Electric Cooperative, Inc. (OMECO) is facing a power shortage of about 22.5 megawatts (MWs), causing frequent power outages in the area.
In a statement, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said the National Electrification Administration (NEA) is taking steps to mitigate the power shortage by procuring additional power supply.
So far, it has facilitated and monitored the delivery of 17 MWs from DMCI Power Corp. and 5 MWs from Power Systems, Inc.
The Department of Energy, meanwhile, issued a Certificate of Exemption allowing OMECO to enter into a negotiated procurement for an Emergency Power Supply Agreement for 17 megawatts (MWs).
The department also facilitated the delivery and deployment of generation sets to vital facilities such as hospitals and commercial areas.
Meanwhile, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council along with other local government units provided the cost of the fuel to power the generation sets.
“To address the immediate power shortage, the Task Force Energy Resiliency will conduct daily briefings with the local government on the power situation and developments in Occidental Mindoro,” the PCO noted.
“The government agencies are committed to resolving the power shortage in Occidental Mindoro and are working towards long-term solutions,” it added. – ag
