The chance of realizing the Bohol-Cebu submarine cable interconnection gets brighter after the officials of Maribojoc town relented and agreed in principle to host the cable link coming from Cebu and the transmission lines going to Corella and ultimately will distribute the electric power to Boholano consumers.
In a meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2020, Maribojoc Mayor Romulo Manuta, first district Rep. Edgar Chatto together with Vice Mayor Emilio Castilla and Sangguniang Bayan (SB) members met to discuss with the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) the future of the interconnection link, involving a submarine cable that will originate from Cebu and terminate in Maribojoc where a cable terminal station (CTS) will be located if plans will not miscarry.
NGCP officials explained to those who attended the meeting the importance of the interconnection between Cebu and Bohol to compliment the link between Leyte and Bohol.
The new CTS will no longer be near the iconic watchtower in Maribojoc. The new site where the cable will emerge from the sea will be 800 meters away from the watchtower and the area is near the boundary with Loon town.
The Maribojoc mayor and the members of the SB ascertained that the transmission lines will no longer cause an eyesore to the tourism development sites of the said town.
As the NGCP made an effort to avoid causing an eyesore and negative impact to the town’s development, the town leaders decided to give the project a chance. All these information were announced by Manuta in a radio interview over Newsmakers ug Uban Pa on Friday, Oct. 23, 2020 as hosted by the mother and son tandem of Ardy Araneta-Batoy and Chandymar.
A huge portion of Bohol’s electric power comes from geothermal plants located in Leyte. The power is sent to Bohol via a submarine cable link. The CTS is located in Ubay where the power is further distributed to distribution utilities in Bohol via transmission lines.
With Bohol’s expected increased demand for power in the future and to ensure stable supply of power in the event Leyte’s power plants are unable to deliver, it is important to have an alternative source of power,
Manuta recalled that sometime in August 2019, officials of the NGCP went to his office to reveal plans about the interconnection line between Cebu and Bohol. The plan calls for a submarine cable from Cebu and emerges in Loon town. The line will traverse 12 barangays in Maribojoc. The line will traverse another body of water which is the Abatan River to reach Cortes and ultimately will connect to an NGCP station in Corella town.
After a couple of months, the NGCP approached the LGU of Maribojoc as the plan got revised since the cable will emerge from the sea and will connect to a CTS located in barangay Punta Cruz, Maribojoc.
However, Manuta relayed to the NGCP that his administration will reject any project that will cause a negative impact on the town’s tourism and housing development projects.
In a telephone interview, NGCP spokeswoman Betty Martinez said that the meeting was fruitful and it is always welcome gesture that parties are able to communicate with each other, able to solve the issues and move forward.
THE NEXT STEP
Manuta, in the same interview, said that the next step involves a composite team of contractors that will negotiate for the right of way, secure the necessary permits, and conduct dialogues with the barangay folks.
The mayor said personnel from the NGCP will visit the 12 barangays and will conduct dialogues with lot owners that will be affected by the project.
In a related news, Rep. Edgar Chatto, in a radio interview last Wednesday over Open Forum, said, the barangay consultation will transpire soon following the approval of the local town leaders to go on with the NGCP’s project.
The consultation will tackle the right of way issues and which properties will be impacted by the implementation of the project.
THANKFUL
Chatto denied insinuations that the provincial government allegedly prevented personnel from NGCP to proceed with its project of the link.
He said that as a congressman with oversight powers, he knows what is happening with the project as he is always present in the meetings between government officials and the officials of the NGCP.
Chatto said that the NGCP is very thankful to the governor and the municipal government of Maribojoc. While there are problems that came up in relation to the project, these are being promptly solved with the help of the provincial government, Chatto bared in the interview.