Based on Socoteco II’s projections, an additional 52 centavos per kilowatt-hour (kwh) will be added to the area’s basic power rates if the generator sets will be used for six hours daily and P1.22 per kwh for 12 hours.
A capacity fee of 22 centavos per kwh will be charged to local power consumers while the generator units are on standby.
Aside from the operationalization of the generator sets, Rivera said the local government is also coordinating with others sectors in the city to determine possible measures to help ease the rotational brownouts and its impact on the local economy.[]
He said they are specifically looking at tapping other alternative power sources to ensure stable power supplies in the area, especially during the coming summer season.
The rotational brownouts in the city and other areas served by Socoteco II reached as high as seven hours last year due to the reduction of power supplies coming from the hydroelectric plants of the National Power Corporation in Bukidnon and Lanao provinces.
The power supply shortage was blamed on the declining water levels along Lake Lanao and the Pulangi River, where the hydroelectric plants are located.
Owing to this, the mayor said urged local residents to make the necessary preparations in case the rotational brownouts would eventually worsen.[]
