Cebu-Bohol power interconnection project to start next year – Chatto

CEBU CITY – The Regional Development Council (RDC) in Central Visayas has been aggressively pursuing the implementation of the Cebu-Bohol power interconnection project since the deadly 2013 earthquake and super typhoon up to the last Friday’s RDC year-end meeting here.

Bohol Governor Edgar Chatto thanked the RDC-7 for its consistent support for the development of the province as he cited the series of lobbying done for the Cebu-Bohol power link and the Cebu-Negros Oriental to Siquijor submarine cable for power stability in Central Visayas.

The year ender endorsement was to reiterate the urgency of the Cebu-Bohol power link project. Chatto said the second power interconnection will be vital in the realization of other timelines of Bohol’s development agenda.

According to Chatto, after years of lobbying, engineering and survey will start in January-August 2019 “to signal the start of the project,” Chatto added.

Chatto bared that through the Bohol Energy Development Advisory Group (BEDAG) the province will still pursue the construction of a large-scale inland power plant for a more reliable, sustainable and resilient energy.

A team from the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), headed by NGCP-Visayas Systems Operations chief Engr. Raul Galano, presented the interconnection project timetable during the BEDAG meeting led by Chatto at the Governor’ Mansion last week.

According to Galano’s presentation, the pre-construction activities such as the right of way (ROW) acquisition and environmental permits processing/ issuance will follow until construction will begin in July 2020 and get completed in December 2021.

Galano revealed that the 230-kilovolt (KV) Cebu-Bohol interconnection has a power transfer capacity of 400 megawatts, almost six times larger than the 90-MW capacity of the existing link from Leyte.