DOE: Addt’l 17-MW to provide 24/7 power in Occidental Mindoro

The Department of Energy (DOE) said Thursday it is seeking to resolve the power crisis in Occidental Mindoro through the additional 17-megawatt (MW) contract that the government entered into that could provide continuous power in the province.

DOE Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan said the National Electrification Administration (NEA) is consolidating available resources to address the 20-hour daily power outage in Occidental Mindoro, including the assessment of a powerplant that could give additional 6 MW, and generator sets that have 8-MW capacity.

“Ito ay mangyayari sa loob ng dalawang buwan habang tinatayo ang additional na 17 megawatts na magbibigay ng 24/7 operation sa Occidental Mindoro,” he told Unang Balita in an interview.

“Ito po ang magbibigay ng lunas sa atin para maging continuous na ang suplay ng kuryente sa Mindoro,” he added.

(This will happen in two months while we build the additional 17 megawatts that will provide 24/7 operation in Occidental Mindoro. This will give us the remedy for the electricity supply in the province to become continuous.)

NEA administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda said Monday that the DOE already issued a certificate of exemption or emergency power supply agreement (EPSA), which allowed the government to enter a contract with DMCI for the additional 17-MW power supply.

According to Almeda, DMCI committed to roll out 10 MW in 30 days and the other seven MW in two months.

Occidental Mindoro is currently under a state of calamity due to the power outages for the last month and a half, according to Governor Eduardo Gadiano on Friday. —KBK, GMA Integrated News