Distributor takes advantage of outage to upgrade facilities

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

 

MORE Power took advantage of the NGCP-scheduled brownout on Sunday to upgrade the old and dilapidated distribution facilities in Iloilo City without putting additional burden on consumers.

The distribution utility announced that it was able to replace 15 old poles with concrete ones while the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) was conducting maintenance activities.

The maintenance works affected Guimaras province and some parts of Iloilo for 9 hours from the supposedly 12-hour power interruption as earlier announced.

The affected area is comprised of the whole franchise area of Guimaras Electric Cooperative and MORE Power’s 13.2kV distribution line in Brgy. Balabago, Jaro, Iloilo, which is along NGCP’s Sta. Barbara-Ingore 69kV transmission line.

MORE Power said it replaced 15 poles in Jaro – 10 rotting wooden poles on 8th Street, Lawaan and 5 decaying poles in Metropolis, Bitoon.

The firm also replaced 18 crumbling cross-arms along Bitoon to Balantang in Jaro.

The power distributor said it also took advantage of the scheduled interruption to correct its transformers, low sagging and long spanning primary lines in the area.

MORE Power also replaced a dilapidated wooden pole along Bonifacio Drive, City Proper, in front of the Iloilo Hall of Justice.

Aside from the pole upgrade, MORE Power’s technical team also instituted corrective measures on its suspension regulators along with the sagging and long spanning primary lines in the area.

MORE Power said the upgrade will help ensure reliable service to consumers, especially in the onset of the typhoon season.

“We know for a fact that unmaintained power lines leave an immense hazard for electrocution accidents aside from causing unscheduled power interruptions and to maintain them in tip-top shape will help a lot to save the day for us,” MORE Power said in a statement.