Major highway of Gensan soon to be developed, expanded

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (18 April 2015) - The Department of Public Works and Highways is already preparing for the development and expansion of the National Highway-Mabuhay road junction to ease rush hour traffic there.

During the Tagboan sa City Hall monthly press conference, Engr. Nerio Concepcion said the DPWH regional office is already gearing for the development of the junction which would involve the construction of an overpass and underpass.

Concepcion said this project, although originally set to start in 2016, would be underway on the first or second semester of this year, or before the election ban takes effect.

Concepcion said the development of the highway is one of the DPWH major projects in Gensan for 2016. He said the project would cost around P350 million. The Bulaong-National Highway section is also included in the project.

City Mayor Ronnel Rivera expressed his gratitude to the DPWH for helping the city solve one of its major problems, which is traffic.

“I thank the DPWH for heeding our request to rehabilitate and develop the National Highway – Mabuhay junction. The traffic there is really severe especially in rush hours, that is why we had prior talks with them (DPWH) regarding this matter,” Mayor Rivera said.

The mayor also said the city government is actively counter-parting every project that the DPWH downloads to the city.

For 2015, the DPWH has poured 72 hard projects to Gensan alone, which comprise the construction and redevelopment of secondary roads, streetlights, bridges, and drainage system.

“Most of these projects are in their 90% completion,” Concepcion said. “All these have amounted to around P600 million.”

The street lighting of the main highways of the city such as in the DARBCI – Hadano Park, Hadano Park – Makar, Lagao – Katangawan, and Lagao – Tinagacan were made possible through the partnership of the DPWH, the city government, and SOCOTECO II.

As of now, Mayor Rivera is overseeing the upcoming refurbishment of the Plaza Heneral Santos with the help of the City Engineer’s Office (CEO). The Sangguniang Panlungsod has already approved the P4 million budget for this project.

The overall plan and design for the development of the plaza is already being managed by the CEO headed by Engr. Francisco Provido. (Gensan CPIO/ Ian John Lagare)

SoEnergy donates streetlights

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (9 March 2015) – Five streetlights were donated by the SoEnergy International to lighten up one of the dim streets in Barangay Apopong.

SoEnergy, one of the power distributors of Gensan operating in Apopong, installed five streetlights in Olaer Road in the wake of requests by residents to illuminate the area to deter crimes.

“As part of our corporate social responsibility,” said SoEnergy operations head Yesid Figueroa, “we have to make the communities—in where we operate—better.”

“It is not all about the profit,” Figueroa added.

City Mayor Ronnel Rivera, during the ceremonial lighting on March 4, said the city government will pay the bill of these streetlights.

The mayor said that with the help of SOCOTECO, the installation of these streetlights was hastened and the maintenance will be the responsibility of SOCOTECO and City Engineer’s Office (CEO).

“We will do our best to make the lives of our constituents better. We will form strong Public-Private Partnerships in order to build more projects that would benefit the city,” Mayor Rivera said.

Each of the streetlights cost around P20,000.

CEO head Francisco Provido disclosed that the city has still inadequacy of streetlights.

“In our study, we have assessed that the city is still in need of approximately 2,000 streetlights. We are trying our best, together with the mayor to fill these gaps,” Provido said.

Recently, 719 streetlights were erected by the partnership of Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), LGU Gensan, and SOCOTECO in the junctions of DARBCI-Hadano, Hadano-Makar, Lagao-Katangawan, and Lagao-Buayan.

These streetlights, together with their components, were funded by the LGU Gensan, at a cost of around P33 million.

The stretch of Batomelong to Tinagacan will be the next area to be illuminated according to the CEO head.

Mayor Rivera indicated that inner roads, as well as the barangay streets, would soon have streetlights.

“I want the entire Gensan to be bright. This would help us to prevent crimes and make our constituents feel safe at night,” the mayor said. (Gensan CPIO/ Ian John Lagare)

SOCOTECO II: Power supply in Gensan stable

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (9 March 2015) – SOCOTECO II acting head Crisanto Sotelo said on Wednesday (March 4) that Gensan has enough power supply for 2015 that would put rotational brownouts common during the summer period a thing of the past.

Sotelo disclosed the current maximum load needed by Gensan is around 130MW. He confidently conveyed that through the contracts they have with different power distributors, the city would not experience power shortages.

Even with the closure of the two power plants of the STEAG State Power Inc. Empowering Mindanao last February, the power supply of the city remains stable largely because of South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative's (SOCOTECO II) venture with other energy companies.

STEAG used to supply 25MW to Gensan.

As of now, Gensan receives power supply from SoEnergy International, Peakpower Inc., Mapalad Power Corporation, Therma Marine Inc. and the National Power Corporation.

SoEnergy and PeakPower are both Gensan-based generating 15MW and 20MW power supply, respectively.

Sotelo also bared that SOCOTECO has already made a contract with the Sarangani Energy Corporation (SEC) currently being constructed in Maasim, Sarangani Province.

Sotelo said SEC would be fully operational by late 2015 or early 2016. When that time comes, Gensan will secure 70MW power from the said power distributor.

“Right now, the biggest threat in our power supply not only for Gensan but in the entire country as well, is the El Nino. We have to prepare for it and mitigate its effects,” Sotelo said.

He also commended City Mayor Ronnel Rivera for the strong partnership he made between the city government and SOCOTECO II.

“We are really thankful that Mayor Rivera is really coordinating with us when it comes to the power issues of the city,” Sotelo said.

As part of his thrust to make Gensan as a booming business beacon of SOCSKSARGEN region, Mayor Rivera is constantly emphasizing the crucial role of power in making this pursuit possible.

“We cannot attract investors if we cannot guarantee sufficient power supply from them. Businesses cannot smoothly operate with the presence of energy shortages. This is the reason why we work hand-in-hand with SOCOTECO to find solutions to the problems, to have a sustainable energy here in Gensan,” Mayor Rivera emphasized. (Gensan CPIO/ Ian John M. Lagare)

Mayor Rivera supports construction of new power plant in GenSan

By Ian John M. Lagare

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (05 June 2014) – City Mayor Ronnel Rivera has voiced out his support to the ongoing construction of a 20-megawatt power plant in the city.

The bunker fuel fired power plant being constructed by Peak Power SOCKSARGEN Inc., (PSI) is set to operate in September this year.

On Tuesday (June 3), Mayor Rivera attended the public hearing set by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) regarding the Power Purchase and Transfer Agreement (PPTA) between South Cotabato Electric Cooperative II (SOCOTECO II) and PSI.

 “The entry of Peak Power here in GenSan is an opportunity for us to give a lasting solution to the brownouts that are hitting the city. Of course, these brownouts are really affecting us severely and we in the local government are coordinating with SOCOTECO to address the concerns,” Mayor Rivera said.

For the past months, GenSan has experienced 2-4 hours of rotational brownouts, with other areas being served by SOCOTECO II also experiencing the same problem, or worse. 

According to SOCOTECO II, this is due to the low power allocation given by the National Power Corporation (NPC) to the cooperative, which is around 30MW.

It has dropped from 50MW to 20MW.

There are three independent power plants, aside from NPC, that supply electricity to the city; Therma Marine Inc. (30MW), Mapalad Power Corporation (30MW), and SoEnergy (15MW).

To sum up, GenSan’s total power supply is around 100MW which is still insufficient for the 120MW power requirement of the city.

PeakPower is contracted by SOCOTECO to provide around 20MW of electricity to augment the power insufficiency.

These power plants will operate during the city’s peak hours (8AM-10PM), when most establishments and individual consumers are usually using high loads of electricity.

Edgardo Calabio, PSI vice president, disclosed that the contract between SOCOTECO II and Peak Power will last for 15 years for their capital recovery.

Afterwards, the power plant will be turned over to SOCOTECO II as part of the Build, Operate Transfer (BOT) scheme adopted by the two companies. 

Mayor Rivera projects that this will be a long-term solution to address the power concerns of GenSan.

Aside from that, Mayor Rivera divulged that he is eyeing to put solar power plants somewhere in Barangay Bawing.

He reported that together with Councilor Dominador Lagare III, he had already prior engagements with solar power plant contractors from Manila.

“We need as much power as we can get to boost the development of the city. Clean and renewable power source is a good venue as new power source,” Mayor Rivera said. (GENSAN CPIO/Ian John M. Lagare)

ERC holds public hearing on power agreement

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (05 June 2014) – City Mayor Ronnel Rivera attends the public hearing of Energy Regulatory Commission on the Power Purchase and Transfer Agreement between the SOCOTECO II and Peak Power SOCSKSARGEN Inc. (PSI) Tuesday, June 3, at SOCOTECO Conference Hall. Prior to the hearing, Mayor Rivera has already agreed to the entry of PSI in the city, in which it is expected to generate 20MW of electricity to curtail the power shortage in GenSan. (GENSAN CPIO/Russell Delvo)

20MW power plant to be built in GenSan

GENERAL SANTOS CITY ( 16 December 2013 ) – City Mayor Ronnel Rivera (2^nd from left) attends the formal launching of the construction of the 20MW bunker-fired power plant of Peakpower Energy Inc. at SOCOTECO II Compound in Barangay Apopong Monday, December 16. With Peakpower president Roel Castro, Mayor Rivera together with City Administrator Atty. Arnel Zapatos looked into the blueprint for the power plant that is expected to be finished after one year with a cost of over P1.5 billion. Although the power plant was set at 20MW, it has auxiliary power supplies that can generate a net capacity of around 90MW. SOCOTECO II has directly franchised the usage of the power plant of Peakpower, which means that it will be exempted from transmission charges of National Grid Corporation of the Philippines. (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/Russell Delvo) 

ERC, SOCOTECO II conduct public hearing on power sales agreement"

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (31 October 2013) - The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) represented by Gloria Victoria Yan-Taruc holds a public hearing on the Power Sales Agreement between SOEnergy Corporation and SOCOTECO II Wednesday, October 30. In the public hearing, SOCOTECO general manager Rodolfo Ocat presented the power rates by the time SOEnergy will be utilized as well as the contract agreement of the two parties. A provisional authorization will be released by the ERC on November 10 to legally start the operation of SOEnergy in the city. City Mayor Ronnel Rivera had earlier directed SOCOTECO II to fast-track the request for authority in order for GenSan power to stabilize. (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/Russell Delvo)

20.9 MW power plant construction set to begin

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (15 August 2013) - Officials from the local government of Gen. Santos City, along with executives of South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative (SOCOTECO II), formally kicked off the ground breaking ceremony and time capsule laying for the 20.9 Megawatt (MW) Power Plant for this city Wednesday (August 14)..

According to SOCOTECO II general manager Engr. Rodolfo Ocat, “the move is aimed towards creating a stable supply of energy in the city.”

Gen. Santos City has been part of the areas hit by severe power outages with the lack of supply of energy in the island of Mindanao.

Ocat also added that the 20.9 MW bunker-fired (diesel) power plant is a B.O.T. (Build-Operate-Transfer) project.

This means that after 15 years of operation, the power plant will be formally turned over to SOCOTECO II by A. Brown Company, Inc. (ABCI) through its subsidiary Peakpower Energy Inc.

Ocat also added that after the plant’s  turn over to SOCOTECO II,   power rates are expected to be reduced after cost recovery charge is taken out from the consumer’s monthly billing.

City Mayor Ronnel Rivera, in a speech delivered by City Councilor Rosalita Nunez, reiterated his message for the need of “adequate supply of energy in the city,” considering that GenSan is a major economic hub in the region.

The city mayor also lauded SOCOTECO II executives for a job well done.

For her part, Nunez also said that,“we need more power supply because many investors are interested to come in here in the city.”

 The power plant project’s simple capsule-laying and groundbreaking ceremony was held at SOCOTECO II’s compound in Barangay Apopong.

SOCOTECO II board president Elenito Senit also thanked the city government which, according to him, is now “very much supportive to SOCOTECO II’s plans and projects.” (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/Ping Aponesto-CPIO)

Power plant breaks ground in GenSan

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (15 August 2013) - City Mayor Ronnel Rivera (2^nd from right) and SOCOTECO II general manager Rodolfo Ocat (3^rd from right) with Peakpower Energy Inc. (PEI) CEO Roel Castro (holding the capsule) and A Brown Co. Inc. (ABCI) chairman Dr. Walter W. Brown (extreme right) break ground for the 20.9MW Bunker Fired Power Plant at the SOCOTECO II Cooperative Compound in Barangay Apopong Wednesday, August 14. A capsule containing the blueprint of the project, Memorandum of Affirmation (MOA) and newspaper clippings about the power crisis were buried, denoting that the project was aimed to solve power shortages in the city. (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/Russell Delvo)

City mayor, power firm, SOCOTECO sign power plant deal

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (15 August 2013) - Peakpower Energy Inc. (PEI) CEO Roel Castro (extreme right) and Dr. Walter Brown (extreme left) of A Brown Co. Inc. (ABCI) sign the Memorandum of Affirmation with City Mayor Ronnel Rivera (2^nd from left) Wednesday, August14, regarding the 20.9MW Bunker Fired Power Plant to be established in Barangay Apopong. The MOA signified the agreement of all parties involved in the construction of the power plant that will ensure power stability in the city. Also present in the signing is SOCOTECO II president Elenito Senit (center). (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/Russell Delvo)

“No brownout in GenSan possible” – SOCOTECO II assures Mayor Rivera

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (07 August 2013) - No brownout in GenSan is possible.

These were the words of South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative (SOCOTECO II) general manager Rodolfo Ocat as he met for the third time with City Mayor Ronnnel Rivera to brief him on the current status of the power scenario in the city.

“Through the precedence of Mayor Rivera towards sustainable power supply, we can ploy projects that can realize such goal (no brownouts),” Ocat said.

Engr. Ocat also added that despite reports by the National Power Corporation (NPC) that Mindanao is currently experiencing a 90MW energy shortage because of ongoing preventive maintenance work in one of NPC’s coal plants, generally the city will be spared from large scale brownouts.

To compensate for the inadequacy in power supply, both Mapalad Power Corporation and Therma Marine Inc. provide 30MW of energy which is part of their contract with SOCOTECO II.

In addition, last May, SOCOTECO II also signed a deal with Miami-based energy provider SOEnergy International to augment power supply in the city in case of shortages.

Costing for the additional power supplied by SOEnergy will be determined by the hours it will be utilized.

Apparently, the estimated price is around P4.35 kw/H and succeeding rates will apply depending on the length of usage of the additional energy.

Aside from the availed power from SOEnergy, SOCOTECO II and the local government also agreed to avail of non-firm power supply, implementation of Interruptible Load Program (ILP) and the advocating of practical energy conservation efforts.

Rivera lauded the moves taken by SOCOTECO II saying that this type of foresight in the management of power supply is needed to boost the economic confidence in the city. (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/Ian John M. Lagare)

Rivera meets with SOCOTECO II, outlines power concerns

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (28 July 2013) - Mayor Ronnel Rivera met with South Cotabato Electric Cooperative II (SOCOTECO II) general manager Engr. Rodolfo Ocat regarding prevailing power concerns that are affecting the city.

Together with City Administrator Atty. Arnel Zapatos, Rivera and Engr. Ocat discussed critical issues on power supplies and services that SOCOTECO II is facing.

Power interruptions have been considerably less since Mayor Rivera’s term began but brief and frequent power outages can still be observed.

Currently, National Power Corporation (NPC) supplies around 43MW out of its 52MW contract this year due to the reduced capacity of its hydroelectric plants in Bukidnon and Lanao del Norte.

SOCOTECO II through Engr. Ocat proposed different approaches to cope with the minimal power shortage such as proper power allocation and utilization, renewable energy sources and strengthening Private-Public Partnership (PPP) programs.

According to Rivera public and private sector linkage is necessary to generate enough resources for SOCOTECO II so that it will help in sustaining its operations and if necessary improve its facilities.

“Remedies must be done to guarantee that General Santos City is a haven for businesses to invest in and an abode to economic growth,” Rivera said.

The Rivera administration and SOCOTECO II also discussed the possibility of energy importation from sources aside from the NPC to achieve a sufficient power supply for the city.

At the end of the July 23 meeting, Mayor Rivera again reiterated his assurance to the SOCOTECO II management that the city will support future plans and projects of the coop if it would ensure a constant supply of energy to the city and its residents. (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/Ian John Lagare)

LGU Gensan to brighten up city

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (28 July 2013) - The Local Government Unit (LGU) of General Santos City moves forward  with its project to brighten up dark areas of the city due to lack of street lights.

In a July 23 meeting with local power executives, Mayor Ronnel Rivera said the city is planning to lighten up the city thoroughfares with its street lighting program.

Aside from being one of the promises that Rivera made during the campaign, the mayor cited that it has been a long-time clamor of some of the residents that their streets be illuminated for safety and crime prevention purposes.

 “The presence of street lights is necessary to increase the visibility of an area, thus minimizing crime incidents,” said Rivera.

He cited examples of areas that have no proper illumination as Apopong to Blagan Road, Upper Labay and MSU-GSC Campus.

Mayor Rivera also said that Light Emitting Diodes (LED) lamps will replace some of the less power-efficient sodium street lights like those in Pioneer Avenue to reduce power cost and increase proficiency in the use of electricity.

Engr. Rodolfo Ocat, general manager of South Cotabato II Electric Cooperative (SOCOTECO II), in a meeting with the mayor also said that implementation of the street lighting program has already started.

Ocat added the city’s move to use LED lamps is well thought of because this would reduce the expense of maintenance to power lines, electrical posts and reduce power usage. (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/ Ian John Lagare)

Mayor Rivera takes up GENSAN power situation with SOCOTECO

GENERAL SANTOS CITY (24 July 2013) - Mayor Ronnel Rivera (left) and Atty. Arnel Zapatos, city administrator, visit Engineer Rodolfo Ocat (center), general manager of SOCOTECO II, Tuesday, July 23, to discuss several topics regarding the power situation and problems that concern most of GENSAN residents and the business sector today. (GENSAN INFO OFFICE/Russel Delvo)