By Danessa Rivera (The
Philippine Star) | Updated January 18, 2016 - 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines – The National
Electrification Administration (NEA) has cleared the guarantee for the
long-awaited power supply agreement (PSA) that will provide sufficient and
reliable electricity to the province of Occidental Mindoro.
The guarantee is necessary to seal
the agreement between generators Mindoro Geothermal Power Corp. (MGPC) and the
Occidental Mindoro Consolidated Power Corp. (OMCPC) and the Occidental Mindoro
Electric Cooperative Inc. (OMECO).
In a statement, NEA said the PSA
Guarantee for OMECO is the first released under its new charter, Republic Act
10531 also known as the National Electrification Administration Reform Act of
2013.
Under the charter, the state-run
agency is mandated to implement the government’s rural electrification program
and may act as guarantor for the electric cooperatives’ power purchase
transactions with independent power suppliers.
“NEA is supportive in all endeavors
to ensure reliability of power supply for the electric cooperatives to serve
better their member-consumers. A stable power supply will redound to better
electricity service, more livelihood opportunities and improved quality of
lives for the people of Occidental Mindoro,” NEA administrator Edita S. Bueno
said.
OMECO acting president Rodolfo
Plopinio expressed their consumers’ gratitude to NEA for
“We have been praying for this for
over a year now. We thank the NEA Administrator for understanding how our
problems with energy supply has adversely affected the lives of our 65,000
consumers,” said Plopinio.
The PSA was signed by OMECO and NEA
way back in February 2014. Last November, the electric cooperative asked the
state-run agency to clear the PSA guarantee since it already agreed to
conditions and completed submitting all documentary requirements.
The province’s capital town, San
Jose, was once dubbed as the “Blackout Capital of the Philippines” due to power
outages that last between six to twelve hours a day because of inadequate power
supply and disconnection from the main grid.
Insufficient energy supply has not
only affected the daily lives of its consumers, but has also hampered local
business activities and slowing economic growth in the province.
OMCPC is constructing a 20-megawatt
(MW) diesel power plant in the province.
On the other hand, MGPC is a
subsidiary of renewable energy company Emerging Power Inc., which is building a
40-MW Geothermal Power Plant in Naujan, Oriental Mindoro. The project is
expected to begin commercial operation by 2017 and will be able to supply
electricity to more than 250,000 homes in Oriental and Occidental Mindoro.
“We fully support initiatives of the
private sector, government and electric cooperatives to attain stable and clean
energy with lower electricity rates,” EPI president Martin Antonio Zamora said.
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