CITY OF SAN FERNANDO – Citing the primacy of the interest and welfare of the people, the Pampanga provincial government on Monday interceded between the San Simon local government and the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines over the closure order the former imposed on the latter’s construction of a sub-station in the municipality.
In a hearing at the Capitol, San Simon Mayor Abundio Punsalan Jr. declared the lifting of his September 9 closure order on the ongoing construction of the NGCP’s 230-kiloVolt sub-station in an industrial park in his town.
“You can start anytime. Ang advice po ni Gov. Delta at Vice Gov. Nanay ang sinusunod namin. San Simon is welcoming the NGCP,” the mayor told representatives of the power transmission firm.
This, after Gov. Dennis “Delta” Pineda and Vice Gov. Lilia “Nanay” Pineda ordered a thorough review of documents and a hearing on the matter.
In a press statement last week, the NGCP warned of “looming transmission service reliability issues” arising from Punsalan’s closure order, which, it said was “premised on the allegation that construction of the said substation was being undertaken without the necessary permits required by the San Simon LGU.”
“NGCP presented to the LGU a copy of the building permit it issued for the project last year, 01 June 2021, before project implementation,” it furthered, but the closure order remained.
In Monday’s hearing, NGCP representatives presented the company’s land title over a 10-hectare property it purchased inside the Global Asiana Business Park 2, convincing Punsalan of the firm’s ownership of the property and its location in an industrial zone.
Capitol leaders intervened as parts of efforts to help investors and to avert a looming power shortage as a possible result of the delay in the construction of the facility.
“Kailangang-kailangan ang sub-station na yun para para hindi magkaproblema ang present at future investors,” Vice Governor Pineda said in the hearing also attended by officials of the Department of Interior and Local Government.
Atty. Cynthia Alabanza, NGCP assistant vice president for public relations, said the firm had complete permits and clearances.
She thanked both the governor and vice governor for helping review the process, noting that the closure order delayed critical construction works.
According to the NGCP, the San Simon 230kV Substation Project was certified as an Energy Project of National Significance (EPNS) by the Department of Energy in 2019. It said the project aims to reinforce the reliability and stability of power transmission services in the Luzon grid, by serving as alternate source for customers connected to the existing Mexico Substation. With Pampanga PIO
