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Seventeen more Cebu companies have pledged support for the power-saving scheme implemented by the Visayan Electric Company (Veco) and the provincial government amid the power crisis.
Veco spokesperson Ethel Taneo Natera said the entry of the 17 companies would mean 10 to 20 megawatts of electricity would be saved on days when power would run low. On such days, Veco would tap the generators of the 17 companies.
Natera spoke after the signing of a memorandum of agreement between Veco and the 17 companies on power-saving. Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia and Cebu officials witnessed the signing.
With power savings guaranteed by 22 other firms that signed the Interruptible Load Agreement (ILA) on April 2009, power reserves now total 36MW.
For the governor, the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement was an important feat of public and private sector partnership. She said she was happy about the agreements and their implications.
?We are very thankful for the private sector for continuing to work with us. This is again, as I said, a very wonderful example of public-private partnership in dealing with a concern that really must take everybody to get together,? Garcia said.
In a separate interview, Natera said that the agreement mandates bigger firms to use their generator sets in times of low power so that Veco's power supply can be used by companies that do not own generator sets.
The amount of reserves brought in by the signatory firms will depend on the condition of the company's generator. Aside from that, the guarantee of continuing electric supply will also depend on a day's power demand, said Natera.
The new firms which signed the ILA agreement at the Capitol on Tuesday include Mastercraft Philippines Inc., Wellmade Motors, Profoods International, Monde Nissin, Ginebra San Miguel, Cenapro Corp., Clear Water Ice Plant, Foodasavers Mart, Hyundai Cebu, Gentech Ice Cold Storage, Prince Warehouse Club Mandaue, Parklane International Hotel, The Queen City Foodchain, Kimhee Realty, Multimax Foam, Zuellig Pharma, and Alpa City Suites.
