Mandaue City Council calls for action amid power outages

CEBU, Philippines — The Mandaue City Council is seeking immediate financial relief, subsidies, and technical intervention from national energy agencies amid frequent and prolonged power interruptions affecting businesses and residents in the city.

The council approved a resolution formally requesting the Department of Energy (DOE), Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), and National Electrification Administration (NEA) to address the economic disruptions caused by recurring brownouts.

Councilor Jennifer Del Mar, who authored the resolution, said the measure was prompted by the impact of the outages on micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

“Maong akong gibuhat ang resolution is for the small and medium enterprises kay affected man gyud sila,” Del Mar said in an interview on October 1.

Del Mar said the Mandaue Chamber of Commerce and Industry had informed her office that business establishments were being affected by the recurring interruptions.

“Mao ni akong gihimo ang resolution to protect the business sector,” she said.

The recurring outages have disrupted business operations, resulted in canceled work shifts, damaged equipment and home appliances, and caused economic losses, according to the resolution.

Del Mar said the interruptions have particularly affected micro and small retailers, wet markets, manufacturing establishments, and digital service providers.

Residents have also been affected, particularly elderly people, sick residents, and students who rely on electricity for their daily activities.

The resolution noted that while the local distribution utility is responsible for the integrity of its distribution network, issues involving grid stability, capacity constraints, generation shortfalls, and broader utility oversight may also require intervention from national agencies.

It called on the DOE, ERC, and NEA to provide financial relief, targeted power subsidies, and emergency power allocations to help businesses and residents cope with the impact of the outages.

Del Mar, however, said the specific form of relief would depend on what the concerned agencies could provide.

The council also called for the deployment of a technical task force to conduct an emergency audit of the local power grid, substations, and distribution infrastructure.

The audit is expected to identify bottlenecks and determine permanent corrective measures to address recurring power interruptions.

The council further urged the concerned agencies and the local distribution utility to coordinate on measures to prevent further economic disruption in Mandaue City. — /MRM (FREEMAN)