Senator Christopher Lawrence “Bong” Go has called on the management of Northern Davao Electric Cooperative to swiftly address the power outages in Samal Island, citing need to alleviate the living condition in the island whose residents are also consumer-members of the electric cooperative.

In an ambush interview after aiding struggling residents in Maco, Davao de Oro on Thursday, the lawmaker stressed that tourism in the island is already affected because of the power outages.

During the hearing of the Senate Committee on Energy held recently where Go is also member, Jolly Ann C. Kuan, corporate planning manager of NORDECO, presented a
long-run solution which involves a submarine cable and they are already monitoring the accomplishments of the contractor for the project.

Go, meantime, stressed that he will keep a close eye on this development, hoping that the targeted energization takes place on time.

As someone who considers Samal his second home, the senator said he understands the hardships that the residents and businesses face due to frequent power outages as he stressed that residents’ quality of life would be greatly improved once the power supply is reliable and uninterrupted.

Reports from the National Electrification Administration said that the prolonged power outages experienced in Samal Island are a direct result of an unmet power demand of nine megawatts.

Presently, the power supply available in Samal stands at a mere 6.1 megawatts following the malfunction of three generator sets. It is worth noting that two of these malfunctioning sets belong to NORDECO.

The local government unit has already procured additional generator sets, each with a capacity of 2 megawatts, and turned them over to NORDECO. These new units are scheduled to be delivered and become operational by the end of this week.