BACOLOD City – The Negros Electric and Power Corporation (Negros Power) has provided power supply to consumers of Northern Negros Electric Cooperative (NONECO), a power distribution utility (DU) based in the northern part of Negros Occidental.
NONECO, in a press statement, cited that the cooperative experienced an unexpected power interruption at around 5:50 a.m. on Tuesday, October 15, after its 15 megavolt amperes (MVA) malfunctioned.
The incident has affected the Victorias Substation, resulting in service disruptions to about 30,000 households across Victorias City and the towns of E.B. Magalona and Manapla.
Due to the incident, Negros Power immediately responded by extending help to its neighboring DU. It provided 2-megawatt (MW) power supply following the request of NONECO.
By 12:30 p.m. on Wednesday, October 16, Negros Power successfully connected the line with NONECO, energized and started the delivery of 2MW supply for the Victorias Substation.
“We understand the difficulties faced by our fellow industry player and neighbor, NONECO, and their consumers during this challenging time,” said Roel Castro, president and chief executive officer of Negros Power.
He added: “We didn’t hesitate to extend our support by providing them with 2MW of temporary supply from our Lopez and Panaogao substations.”
He hoped this will alleviate the inconvenience they are experiencing.
Negros Power further said that assistance will continue until NONECO fully restores operations at their Victorias Substation.
Castro, meanwhile, assured the member-consumers of Negros Power that this will not affect the company’s load capacity.
“We have sufficient load to meet the demand within our franchise area in the cities of Bacolod, Talisay, Silay, and Bago, and the towns of Murcia and Don Salvador Benedicto,” he said.
However, Negros Power will closely monitor its substations to ensure a continuous and reliable power supply.
As of this writing, the NONECO said partial load shifting to adjacent substations was being done.
They also sought assistance from Negros Occidental Electric Cooperative (NOCECO) based in the southern part of the province to use their reserve 10 MVA power transformer while the original 15 MVA power transformer in Victorias City is undergoing repair.
They also requested Victorias Milling Company (VMC), a co-generating company embedded in the 15 MVA Victorias Substation distribution line, to provide a 2.5MW supply of electricity to some affected consumers.
NONECO however said that despite these ongoing efforts, certain isolated areas will remain without power due to the limitations on the load capacity of the current transfers.
In a media interview, EB Magalona’s Mayor Marvin Malacon lambasted the NONECO for its failure to buy a new power transformer for the Victorias Substation.
The mayor said that in September last year they had experienced the same power interruption that lasted for almost five days because of the same incident./PN
