Business leaders in Cebu, the bustling heart of the Visayas, expressed concern over a looming power crisis as the surge in tourism and other activities fuel economic growth.
Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) former president Charles Kenneth Co said in a recent radio interview that Cebu could be facing imminent power shortage unless new plants are built.
The increasing need for power that essential services depend on clean running water, connectivity, safety and security and health services, coupled with increasing temperature due to the El Nino phenomenon is expected to impact heavily on demand, he said.
“The NGCP [National Grid Corporation Philippines) forecasts Cebu’s power requirement is growing 7 percent a year. Maybe in the next three to four years, if no new power plants are built, there will be a power shortage. This is the challenge since it also takes three to four years to build a power plant,” said Co.
Cebu is home to 64 percent of Central Visayas’ population, and power outages will have catastrophic consequences to its economy, he said.
Co said Cebu could ill afford such “last-minute” mentality as it would result in billions of productivity losses, triggering shutdowns, job losses, dampening the investment climate and compromising all social services similar to what happened in the 1990s.