No rise in CASURECO II bills despite multi-million peso repair

NAGA CITY (Mar 06 2012) – Normal power supply is expected to resume sometime in mid-March and consumers of Camarines Sur II Electric Cooperative Inc. (CASURECO II) have nothing to worry about possible rise in electric bills because the cost of a multi-million peso repair job shall be charged to the electric cooperative's maintenance funds, a spokesman said.

This city's power provider, CASURECO II, has entered into a package contract with Albay firm, GEMCO, to repair in 7-days a 20 MVA substation-transformer including another rented transformer at the cost of some P7.475-Million pesos, said CASURECO II, spokesman Emmanuel Rojo.

Rojo said that for over a week now the CASURECO II Feeder stations 2,3,4,5 and 6 have been on a power shedding mode for 2 hours in mornings and 1 hour in evenings. Power shortage shall continue until the 20-MVA transformer that was sent to Manila for repair is brought back and reinstalled sometime in the second week of this month, he added.

In the current daily power shedding scheme, both residential and commercial sections of this city shall experience rotation brown-outs.

Back in the middle of February, widespread power outage struck Naga City and the two adjacent towns of Milaor and Minalabac after a 20 MVA transformer-station located at Barangay Concepcion Pequeña suddenly broke down allegedly because of major damage caused by two days of continuous rains.

GEMCO brought in a rented 15/20 MVA power transformer as temporary replacement to the grounded 20-MVA transformer, but the rented transformer caused a "trip-off," Rojo said. (SONNY SALES)