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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider Luzon devider Iloilo City losing P500 M daily from New Year blackout

Iloilo City losing P500 M daily from New Year blackout

Published Jan 5, 2024 04:43 am

ILOILO CITY – This city, the regional capital of Western Visayas, is losing P500 million daily from the blackout that started on January 2 and now on its fourth day on Friday, January 5.

Mayor Jerry Treñas said with this calculation from the Local Economic Development and Investment Promotion Office (LEDIPO), Iloilo City is set to lose P2 billion from January 2 to January 4 as a result of the technical problems of coal-fired power plants here and Iloilo province.

“This is a really big deal,” said Treñas.

ILOILO CITY BLACKOUT.jpg

LIGHT from vehicles illuminate Iloilo City on Thursday night, January 4. Iloilo and the rest of Panay Island are still suffering from a blackout since January 2. (Tara Yap)

Since January 2, some local businesses had to close while others had to spend for additional operating expenses such as power generators to keep their enterprises open for the people.

The Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI)-Iloilo Chapter warned of the negative impact of the prolonged power blackout on the business community in the province.

“This can pose a severe threat to the economy by disrupting productivity, increasing operational costs, and hampering technological advancements,” said PCCI-Iloilo President Fulbert Woo in a statement.

The blackout also affected government services as this city, being the regional capital, is the home of national government agencies.

Treñas slammed the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) for its inability to improve services following a massive blackout in the region last April.

“The multiple trippings of the power plants in Iloilo were caused by the unstable transmission lines of the NGCP coming from Negros to Panay,” Treñas said.

“It should be noted that under the conditions that NGCP has (previously) agreed, these transmission lines would have been developed and improved a long time ago,” Treñas said.

This New Year blackout also affected Aklan, Antique, Capiz, and Guimaras provinces.

Related Tags

Blackout Panay Island Iloilo Iloilo City National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP)
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