ILOILO CITY – Power was restored in Panay Island on Friday afternoon, January 5, four days after a massive blackout crippled the area on January 2.
The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) announced that transmission operations have been fully restored in all areas in Panay Island.
Palm Concepcion Power Corp. (PCPC), operator of the 135-megawatt (135 MW) coal-fired power plant in Concepcion, Iloilo, was able to dispatch its full capacity, enabling it to make electricity available to Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, and Iloilo as well as this city, the regional capital of Western Visayas.
“With PCPC’s synchronization to the grid and its full operation, NGCP has normalized transmission operations,” the NGCP said.
Rotational blackouts were earlier imposed by the Aklan Electric Cooperative Inc. (AKELCO), Antique Electric Cooperative Inc. (ANTECO), Capiz Electric Cooperative Inc. (CAPELCO), Guimaras Electric Cooperative Inc. (GUIMELCO), the three Iloilo Electric Cooperatives Inc. (ILECOs), and MORE Electric and Power Corp. (MORE Power) of Iloilo City.
The blackout started past noon on January 2 when Unit 1 of the coal-fired power plant of the Panay Energy Development Corp. (PEDC) here tripped, affecting its two other units as well as PCPC’s.
The Department of Energy (DOE) has repeatedly called on NGCP, as the nation’s power transmission highway, to do its part in preventing the widespread power shutdown in Panay Island.