ILOILO CITY?Western Visayas officials have raised alarm over the possibility of a massive power shortage or higher power rates on Panay and Guimaras islands once the two power generators in Iloilo are turned over this month to a Singaporean-owned firm.

Presidential Assistant for Western Visayas Raul Banias, Iloilo Gov. Niel Tupas Sr. and Iloilo City Mayor Jerry Treñas will ask President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to delay the turnover of the Panay 2 Power Diesel Plants (PPDP) to SPC Island Power Corp. (SIPC), formerly Salcon Power Corp., on March 26.

In a resolution adopted during its regular meeting on Friday, the infrastructure development committee (IDC) of the Regional Development Council pushed instead for the continued operation of the two power plants by the National Power Corp. (Napocor).

Treñas, the IDC chair, said the group would ask the President to allow Napocor to continue operating PPDP until a new power supply contract between SIPC and the power distributors is approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

The two plants, with a total capacity of 146.5 megawatts and a dependable capacity of 103 MW, were acquired by SIPC for US$5.86 million in November last year in a package that included the 22-MW diesel plants in Bohol.

The PPDP accounts for the bulk of the 121-MW power generated on the island. Napocor is supplying the bulk of the needs of the seven electric cooperatives in Antique, Aklan, Capiz, Guimaras and Iloilo.

SIPC director and treasurer Alfredo Henares, however, told the Philippine Daily Inquirer on Saturday that the company would take over the PDPP on March 25 and immediately start rehabilitation work in preparation for the Visayas Supply Augmentation Auction (VSAA) program.

The VSAA will tap excess supply from privately owned power generators to the power grid.

Napocor vice president for Visayas operations Danilo Sevilla said power distributors had to buy power directly from IPC at an agreed rate because Napocor was not allowed to purchase from an independent power provider and sell at a subsidized rate to distributors.

Treñas and Tupas criticized Napocor and Department of Energy officials for failing to institute measures to avert a power crisis before the plants? turnover.

Tupas threatened to file charges of breach of contract against Napocor because the existing power supply contract with the electric cooperatives in Panay stipulated that it would supply the power distributors until 2010.

Banias said the group was concerned that SIPC would discontinue supplying the electric cooperatives unless a new power supply agreement with a higher rate than the existing Napocor-subsidized rate could be reached.

ERC Commissioner Jose Reyes said during the meeting that it would take at least 75 days for the ERC to approve an application for a power supply agreement.

The officials said the power deficit could worsen the situation in Panay and the rest of the Visayas grid, which is already experiencing brownouts and low voltage due to supply problems.

Peak demand on Panay Island as of this month reached 210 MW but the dependable capacity from power plants on the island was only 121 MW, said Raul Galano of National Grid Power Corp. (NGPC) in a briefing at the RDC meeting.

The 89-MW deficit is being supplied by the Cebu-Negros-Panay grid that draws from geothermal plants in Leyte and from the Luzon grid.