BACOLOD CITY – An unscheduled power interruption hit E.B. Magalona and some parts of Manapla and Victorias City in Negros Occidental for more than 24 hours since Tuesday morning, October 15.
THE Northern Negros Electric Cooperative works to restore power in three areas in Negros Occidental on Wednesday, October 16. (Noneco)
The Northern Negros Electric Cooperative said that the outage occurred around 5:50 a.m. due to a trip-off incident at the Victorias substation.
The power firm said that they immediately acted to assess and address the situation such as transformer testing to confirm and verify the power transformer's overall status.
However, given the scale of the incident, Noneco noted that restoration efforts may take some time to fully resolve the issue. Partial load shifting to adjacent substations was initially conducted.
Noneco wrote a letter to the Negros Occidental Central Electric Cooperative (Noceco) requesting the use of their reserve 10 MVA power transformer while the original 15 MVA power transformer at the Victorias substation is under repair.
The power firm also requested Victorias Milling Co. (VMC), a co-generating company embedded in the 15 MVA Victorias substation distribution line, to provide a 2.5 megawatt supply of electricity to some affected consumers.
Noneco said that they coordinated with Negros Electric and Power Corporation (NEPC/Negros Power) for supply power to E.B. Magalona.
As of 11 a.m. Wednesday, October 16, Engr. Wilbe Bilbao, Noneco general manager, said that NEPC has committed to supply power to the whole coverage of E.B. Magalona while a 10MVA power transformer from Noceco is being mobilized to augment the power supply at the Victorias substation.
As of 1:10 p.m. Wednesday, power was successfully restored in parts of E.B. Magalona Proper through coordination and approval of NEPC to connect with the Silay distribution line.
Despite ongoing efforts, certain isolated areas will remain without power due to the limitations on the load capacity of the current transfers, Noneco said.
Noneco has assured member-consumers that they are doing all the remedies to normalize the power supply in the three affected local government units (LGUs).
“We ask for your patience and understanding as our teams work tirelessly to restore power and ensure the safety of our facilities,” the power firm said.
Bilbao said that they are closely monitoring the status of the ongoing power interruption and is actively planning the next steps to restore electricity to more affected areas.
The entire team is working around the clock to ensure that power is restored as swiftly as possible, he added.
Noneco said that they are conducting a comprehensive testing and investigation to identify the cause of the interruption and implement the necessary measures to restore power as soon as possible.
In August 2023, a five-day blackout affected E.B. Magalona, Victorias City, and a portion of Manapla due to the tripping of the 15 MVA power transformer at Victorias substation.