Power supply today is expected to be in surplus based on the outlook of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines.

The projection of the country's grid operator is that  there will  be about 984 megawatt reserve for the Luzon grid alone.

This, however, is lower than the about 1,200 MW usual reserve of the country's largest island group.

DILG URGED
Include prompt bills payment
in ‘good housekeeping’ norms

The Central Negros Electric Cooperative has requested the Department of Interior and Local Government to include promptness of payment bills of towns and cities in the criteria for the Seal of Good Local Governance.

CENECO general manager Sulpicio Lagarde said yesterday that their records show that the total current amount collectible by the electric firm from the cities of Bacolod and Talisay and the municipality of Murcia have reached P280 million.

He said they find it difficult to improve their services because they lack funds and LGUs have huge debts with them.

‘Tourist arrivals up
by 11.14 percent’

Tourist arrivals in Negros Occidental, including Bacolod City, increased by 11.14 percent last year, compared to the influx of foreign and local travelers in 2012, Christine Mansinares, Provincial Tourism Officer, said yesterday.

Mansinares said that last year, there were 1,126,583 tourists who visited the province, and only 1,013,622 in 2012.

Of the 1,126,583 tourists who arrived in the province last year, 70,782 are foreigners, 6,991 are Overseas Filipino Workers, and the rest are domestic travelers, Mansinares also said.