Aquino wants emergency powers ‘sooner not later’

President Benigno Aquino III AP FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – President Benigno Aquino III said Monday that he wants lawmakers in the House of Representatives and the Senate to expedite the approval of the joint resolution granting him emergency powers to avert possible power crisis during the dry season of 2015.

In the inauguration of the SM Supermalls’ Solar Rooftop Project at SM North Edsa in Quezon City, Aquino said that he needs the emergency powers sooner in order to give the government more time to contract the needed power reserves.

Aquino reiterated that without the emergency powers, Luzon would experience a power shortage ranging from 300 megawatts to 1,100 megawatts.

“We are hopeful that both the House and the Senate will approve the joint resolution we requested sooner rather than later, in order to give the national government enough time to contract the necessary reserves,” Aquino said.

Last week, the House of Committee on Energy approved House Joint Resolution 21, which authorizes Aquino to “to provide for the establishment of additional power generating capacity as mandated by Republic Act No. 9136, also known as the ‘Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA)’, to effectively address the projected shortage of the supply of electricity in the Luzon grid from 12 March to July 2015.”
The chief executive also lauded SM for their participation in the Interruptible Loading Program, a mechanism seen by the government to assuage the effects of the looming energy crisis. Through the ILP, big establishments and customers should tap on their own generation sets for energy and cut from supplied power. SM is said to deload 57.9 megawatts in 2015 if power supply becomes scarce.

According to the said House joint resolution, the emergency powers granted to Aquino will be effective until July 2015, unless withdrawn by the president or as recommended by the Joint Congressional Power Commission (JCPC).

During the critical period, consumers will experience one-hour brownouts each day per week, which will last for at least 15 weeks starting in March.

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