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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Marcos tells energy players: We can't afford another Panay-like blackout

Marcos tells energy players: We can't afford another Panay-like blackout

Published Jan 27, 2024 12:38 am

At A Glance

  • Marcos lamented that people in Panay Island had to welcome the New Year without electricity, leading to almost P4 million in economic losses.
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President Marcos has called on the country's energy players to ensure reliable power supply and prevent a recurrence of the Panay Island blackout that happened early this year, as this will lead to economic losses.

President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. (Malacañang photo)
President Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos Jr. (Malacañang photo)

Marcos said this as he led the simultaneous ceremonial energization of the Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project (MVIP) in Malacañan on Friday, Jan. 26.

In his speech, the President lamented that people in Panay Island had to welcome the New Year without electricity, leading to almost P4 million in economic losses.

"Earlier this month, Panay Island started the new year with a total blackout for three days; parts of Negros Occidental were under rotational power," he said.

"The power interruption caused P3.8 billion in economic losses in the Province of Iloilo alone, notwithstanding the inconvenience that it brought to the people of Western Visayas," he added.

President Marcos hoped that the incident would serve as a lesson and that the country's energy players would ensure that a similar occurrence would not happen.

"We cannot afford to have another round of this costly interruption, not only in Panay Island but anywhere in the country," he said.

"So, let's move forward with the lessons we have gained from this blackout, ensure that this massive inconvenience and loss for our people should not occur again," he added.

According to Marcos, the blackout emphasized the vital role of interconnection projects such as the MVIP, which enhances the stability and reliability of the country's power supply by enabling the sharing of power resources among the three major Islands.

The P52-billion MVIP is spearheaded by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP). It connects the Mindanao and Visayas grids via a 184-circuit-kilometer High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) submarine transmission line.

Meanwhile, President Marcos said he was looking forward to NGCP's promised completion of the 230-kilovolt Cebu-Negros-Panay Backbone Project by March this year and the Hermosa-San Jose 500-kilovolt transmission lines next month.

"We realize these are daunting tasks, but I call on you to faithfully fulfill these obligations, which are so necessary for the progress of our country," he said.

"Let me reiterate the need for greater responsibility, transparency, and accountability among key players in our power sector, with NGCP as the singular operator of our country's united power grid," he added.

Related Tags

Bongbong Marcos Blackout Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) President Marcos
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