Regulator wants SIPCOR explanation on faulty rented genset
Metro Manila, Philippines - The regulator will ask Siquijor province’s single power supplier to explain the faulty generator set as back-up source amid the power crisis in the island, Malacañang said Friday, June 13.
Communications Undersecretary Claire Castro said the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) will issue a show-cause order to Siquijor Island Power Corp. (SIPCOR), which is under Prime Assets Ventures, Inc. of the Villar group.
She said the one-megawatt rented generator set came from Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
“Maraming isyu ang dapat tugunan ng SIPCOR [SIPCOR will also address various issues]: Very low fuel supply inventory, delayed procurement and unavailability of spare parts and unsynchronized preventive maintenance of diesel-powered facilities, power plant operations with expired certificate of compliance and rental generator sets operating without permits,” Castro said.
SIPCOR has a 20-year power supply contract with the Province of Siquijor Electric Cooperative (PROSIELCO) beginning 2015. The off-grid island is a rising tourist destination.
Since May, residents and businesses have been affected by power interruptions that could last from four to 10 hours, the Energy Department said.
On June 5, the local government declared a state of calamity.
After his June 11 inspection, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. set a six-month deadline for SIPCOR to fix the crisis and implement a permanent solution.
Besides the rented genset, Marcos also directed the National Electrification Administration to bring two-megawatt gensets to the province as a temporary fix and to quickly stabilize power supply. The Department of Energy said it expects the gensets to be connected by the weekend.
In a news briefing, Energy Undersecretary Sharon Garin said SIPCOR committed to fixing the gensets within the week. She said only five out of nine gensets are running.
“The cause of the blackouts are mainly 80% of that due to supply, meaning generation company ang cause niyan hindi dahil nasira ‘yong distribution hindi dahil sa other causes [is the cause and not disrupted distribution or other causes],” she said.
Garin said the NEA and other government agencies are also working to stabilize power supply.
“SIPCOR should deliver what they are supposed to deliver as per policy of the ERC, DOE, and also as per their commitments in the power supply agreement with the electric cooperative,” she said.
“If the genco cannot keep up with its responsibilities, it will be the government that will pay for whatever lapses the generation company commits,” she said.
Energy Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan said the DOE has requested the National Transmission Corporation — which owns the grid — to redesign the looping configuration of the island to ensure that all generation facilities will be “talking with each other.”
“So when one is out, then others can supply,” he said.
