Working line-men of VECO
CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Visayan Electric Co. (VECO) is urging its customers to practice energy conservation to mitigate the impact of potential rotating brownouts in response to the recent nationwide low power supply alert.
Quennie Sanchez-Bronce, head of VECO’s reputation enhancement department, said that while the utility company could not directly address grid problems, individual efforts to reduce electricity consumption could alleviate the power supply’s strain.
“We cannot do anything about this since it’s a grid problem, but what we can advise our customers is for them to practice energy conservation to lessen the impact of possible rotating brownouts,” Sanchez-Bronce said in an interview on Friday, April 26.
Veco is the second-largest electric utility in the country. It serves the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay, Naga and the municipalities of Liloan, Consolacion, Minglanilla, and San Fernando.
READ MORE:
Power supply nationwide thins, red and yellow alerts up
Alerts raised on Visayas, Luzon grids due to power woes
Why Cebu needs more power investments to secure future demand
She mentioned several practical measures consumers could adopt to minimize electricity usage and support grid stability.
These include reducing the use of appliances, adjusting air conditioning settings to moderate temperatures, and maximizing natural light to reduce reliance on artificial lighting.
Sanchez-Bronce also reassured customers that any power interruptions experienced would likely be scheduled maintenance outages or emergency measures due to accidents, rather than a direct result of the supply shortage alert.
“We have not experienced power interruptions related to a shortage of power supply alert. If there are any power interruptions, these are scheduled outages for maintenance purposes or emergency outages due to accidents,” she said.
She further noted that they would surely announce if power interruptions occur due to the low power supply alert.
READ MORE:
Energy saving tips to practice all year round
Poe tells NGCP: Expedite completion of Cebu-Panay-Negros project
Last April 24, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), the power grid operator, issued red and yellow alerts across all regions — Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao — due to the low power supply nationwide.
In the Visayas grid, a red alert status was raised from 12 noon to 5 p.m., with yellow alerts scheduled from 10 a.m. to 12 noon, 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., and 8 p.m. to 9 p.m.