CDO blackouts now last from 7.5 to 12 hours

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY, Philippines – Businessmen here are complaining about the long rotating blackouts which the Cagayan Electric Power and Light Cooperative (Cepalco) has implemented starting Tuesday.

From four hours of rotating blackouts, the city is now experiencing power outages lasting from seven and a half to 12 hours.

Cagayan de Oro Chamber president Efren Uy said the blackouts affect small and medium enterprises the most since they are not equipped with power generating sets.

Cepalco said the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) has further decreased its power allocation.

From a normal load requirement of 140 MW, the NGCP earlier had decreased Cepalco’s load to 70 MW, and yesterday the allocation was further down to 25-34 MW.

Cepalco is currently operating with these following power sources: Minergy, 42 MW; interruptible load program, 9 MW; solar power, 1 MW; and Bunawan hydropower plant, 2 to 3 MW.

Minus these sources, the NGCP’s current load to Cepalco can only light up four of the city’s 80 barangays.

Cepalco has divided the city into two groups for its power curtailment, with the first experiencing blackouts from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., and the second, from 3:30 to 11 p.m.

Cepalco said consumers have to make do with more or less 20 percent of the electricity they normally enjoy.

Beth Ladaga, NGCP spokesperson, said there is a current 250-MW shortfall in Mindanao, and the NGCP has to allocate the remaining load from the National Power Corp. to balance the needs of the distributing utilities (DUs).

“In fact,” Ladaga said, “the allocation is being monitored on an hourly basis, so that DUs will not exceed their allocated loads.”

Cepalco is hoping for improvements today when the STEAG coal-fired power plant synchronizes its newly rehabilitated Unit 2 to the Mindanao grid with 105 MW.

STEAG is also scheduled to operate its 105-MW Unit 1 starting June 1.