Bohol will soon have a backup source of power should it be disconnected from the grid after signing a 10-year power supply deal with the Energy Development Corporation (EDC).
The power supply agreement with One Bohol Power Distribution Utilities required a baseload power supply from a renewable energy source, and an in-island backup power to assure 24/7 supply should Bohol be cut off from the Visayas grid like what happened during the onslaught of typhoon Odette and Tropical Storm Agaton.
The contract between EDC and One Bohol will be from January 2024 to 2033.
EDC will be supplying Bohol with 50 to 83 megawatts (MW) from the Unified Geothermal Power Plant, with a backup power supply from the 85.12 MW diesel-fired power plant being constructed on the island.
“Upon completion of the diesel power plant, it will be the first time Bohol province will have a backup source to keep its industry, tourism and residential sectors supplied with electricity even if the connection to Leyte island is cut,” EDC said in a statement.
The generation charge for the contract would be around Php 4.7 per kilowatt-hour (kwh), which is below the Php 5.4089 per kwh price cap set by One Bohol.
Bohol, which is 60% dependent on Leyte for its power needs, was cut off from the Visayas Grid in late December 2021 after Typhoon Odette toppled the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines’ (NGCP) special transmission towers connecting the two islands.
Bohol was reconnected to the grid in April after the partial restoration of the 138-kilovolt Ormoc-Maasin Line 2, while the new special towers were energized on April 18.