ILOILO City – MORE Electric and Power Corporation (MORE Power) is targeting to complete its underground cabling activity in four months.
MORE Power president and chief executive officer Roel Castro said they already finished the ground survey – the basis of their final cost estimate for the project.
The Sangguniang Panlungsod (SP) unanimously approved an ordinance placing underground all electrical and telecommunication wires and cables within the confines of plaza complexes, Sunburst Park and all heritage properties in the city.
Castro said the project covers the whole stretch of Calle Real. They will be using a radar penetrating device to see what structures are underneath so they could determine the route of the underground distribution system.
He added traffic will not be disturbed once they start working because it will be a trench-type undergrounding using a new technology — horizontal drilling technique.
“Hindi namin gagawin na open trench or hindi namin sisirain ang daan… we would be using a new technology — horizontal drilling technique. Bubutas lang kami then papasok lang ang drilling equipment. There would be no disturbance sa road,” said Castro.
The MORE Power executive said the underground trench of their electrical facilities will cost around P95 million.
“This is part of our initiative supporting the city government kasi alam naman natin, the city government has really been at the forefront of leveling up Iloilo,” said Castro.
Moreover, Castro noted as far as the public plazas are concerned, it would be cleared of electrical posts; it will be transferred and placed on one side of the road only.
The ordinance encompasses all the plaza complexes, Sunburst Park, B.S. Aquino Avenue in Mandurriao district, and all protected cultural and heritage properties in the city as determined in Resolution No. 2019-248 and Resolutions 2018-01, 2019-06 and 2019-07 which declared the properties listed therein as protected cultural and heritage properties of Iloilo City.
Task Force PUGI (Public Utility Group of Iloilo) led by MORE Power, with telcos such as Converge, Globe, Smart, PLDT, Skycable, Panay Broadband, and DITO as members, is taking the lead in the implementation of the underground cabling project.
The purposes of the ordinance are the following:
* to promote and popularize the nation’s historical and cultural heritage and resources in the city;
* to promote health and safety and preserve the comfort and convenience of their inhabitants;
* to bolster the image of Iloilo City as internationally competitive, capable of attracting investments while ensuring sustainable development in its midst:
* to provide the populace of the city with a clear model of sustainable and aesthetic response to the rising demands of progress and their impact to the environment; and
* to enhance safety and security of all plaza complexes and cultural and heritage site and properties in the city and other establishments in their vicinity./PN
