MANILA - President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday ordered the completion of the rate reset review for National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), following the Panay Island blackout this week.

“I have also directed the ERC [Energy Regulatory Commission] to complete the reset of NGCP’s rates without further delay, to ensure NGCP’s compliance with its statutory and regulatory obligations, and to defend in no uncertain terms against any attempt to defer, delay, or prevent the implementation of regulatory measures,” the President said in a video message.

The President lamented that while power has already been restored, the situation caused significant hardship to residents, crippling businesses, compromising livelihoods and endangering those in need of healthcare.

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This is the second time that Panay Island experienced a prolonged power interruption in less than a year.

Marcos reminded the NGCP’s commitment to the timely completion of the Mindanao-Visayas and Panay-Negros-Cebu interconnections last year.

The completion of the project remains pending.

“Accountability lies with the NGCP. They are tasked with grid stability. Stability involves proactive responses to breakdowns and unexpected events, a duty that NGCP unfortunately has not fulfilled adequately,” he said.

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“As the systems operator, NGCP must proactively engage with distribution utilities and cooperatives to manage loads and prevent such system collapses,” he said.

Marcos called on the NGCP to proactively engage with distribution utilities and cooperatives to manage loads and prevent system collapse.

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