Rotation brownout affects metro areas

CEBU, Philippines - Almost all areas in Metro Cebu experienced a rotation brownout yesterday imposed by the Visayan Electric Company because of power shortage in the whole Visayas that has reached up to 200 megawatts as declared by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines.

Veco corporate communications officer Ethel Natera said that the NGCP has asked them to shed around 50 megawatts as their share for yesterday morning’s 150-megawatt shortage.

She said that in the afternoon, NGCP asked them to shed 70 megawatts of loads, 80 megawatts in the evening.

Natera said that they impose rotation brownouts based on the real time data sent by the NGCP. She added that if there is a shortage, it doesn’t follow that there will always be interruptions as Veco is also doing its part to minimize interruptions so as not to cause inconvenience to the consumers.

She said that they continuously implement the interruptible load program where they were able to encourage more major consumers to voluntarily shed loads by using their generators.

The interruptible load program contributes around 20 to 30 megawatts a day which is already a big saving, Natera said.

The shortage reaching up to 200 megawatts will last until February 9 or a little beyond that as the Mahanagdong geothermal power plant resumes operation along with other power plants undergoing preventive maintenance.

Last January 31, the NGCP reported the shutdown of the 120-megawatt Mahanagdong geothermal power plant due to preventive maintenance. This has given the Visayas a critical power situation that worsened the brownouts all over the region. — Jessica Ann R. Pareja/MEEV   (FREEMAN NEWS)