Business

Sep72026 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Alminaza pushes green energy reform to solve Visayas power crisis

San Carlos Bishop Gerardo Alminaza on Monday, Sept. 7, called the recurring brownouts across the Visayas a "systemic warning," urging power sector stakeholders to reform the energy system rather than return to fossil-fuel dependence.Alminaza, in a Facebook post, said the ongoing power interruptions severely affect hospitals, schools, businesses, and family life.He opposed suggestions that Negros should construct more coal-fired or liquefied natural gas power plants to solve the power crunch, stating that decisions made today risk locking communities into decades of volatile fuel prices, pollution, and carbon emissions.Alminaza said the underlying issues behind the energy crisis, include inadequate reserve margins, prolonged plant outages, transmission bo...

Sep62026 by Anna Leah GonzalesNo Comments

Huge fuel price increases Tuesday

Business, Top Stories

PNA photoDomestic fuel prices are projected to increase on Tuesday, Sept. 8, following the resumption of hostilities between the US and Iran over mining in the Strait of Hormuz.Citing price developments in the international market, Jetti Petroleum president Leo Bellas said Friday that diesel prices may go up by PHP4.50 to PHP5 per liter, and gasoline by PHP4 to PHP4.50 per liter.“Oil prices rose as the resumption of hostilities between the US and Iran over mining in the Strait of Hormuz raised concerns about more disruptions to energy flows from the Middle East,” Bellas said in a message to the media.He said tightening global diesel inventories and refinery disruptions around the world have further pushed fuel prices higher.This supply squeeze is compounded by dim...

Sep42026 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

Guv says power outages hurting businesses in NegOcc; Javi seeking answers

Business, Top Stories

Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson on Friday, Sept. 4, said that the constant power outages are hurting businesses in Negros Occidental, and if the length of the brownouts worsens, it could become a crisis.Bacolod Rep. Alfredo Abelardo Benitez said the Negros Power and Electric Corp. informed him that several power-generating plants are down for regular maintenance work and for some other reasons, and the lack of power supply is causing the brownouts.“But if I am not mistaken, the maintenance is finished, this coming month should be better,” he said.Lacson said the daily power outages are definitely bad for business.“While many of our business establishments have their own generators, that is an additional cost,” he said.Right now, it is not a crisis, but if the lengt...

Sep42026 by Mark L. GarciaNo Comments

NIR inflation rises to 5.8% in August but remains lowest in Visayas

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Inflation in the Negros Island Region edged higher to 5.8 percent in August, moving opposite the slight slowdown recorded nationwide, but remained below the national rate and substantially lower than the other Visayas regions.Data released by the Philippine Statistics Authority on Friday, Sept. 4, showed NIR’s inflation rate increased from 5.6 percent in July to 5.8 percent in August.National headline inflation, meanwhile, eased slightly to 6.1 percent from 6.2 percent in July, bringing the country’s average inflation from January to August to 5.2 percent.This means that while price increases slowed slightly for the country as a whole, prices in Negros continued to increase at a slightly faster annual pace in August than they did in July.Still, NIR’s 5.8 percent inflation w...

Sep32026 by Digicast NegrosNo Comments

Mayor leads Bacolod toward climate-sensitive, resilient urban development

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Mayor Greg Gasataya (center) during the ceremonial handover of Urban-Act outputs from the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ), represented by Heinrich Gudenus, Project Director of the Integrated Urban Climate Action for Low-Carbon and Resilient Cities (left), and Nicole Kranz, Head of the Climate Action and Disaster Resilience Cluster (right), at Roy’s Hotel and Convention Center.*Mayor Greg Gasataya reaffirmed Bacolod City’s commitment to evidence-based and climate-sensitive urban development as the city hosted the Urban-Act Knowledge Handover at Roy’s Hotel and Convention Center on Tuesday and Wednesday, September 1–2.The two-day event marked the formal turnover of planning toolkits, policy briefs, and climate risk assessment reports developed unde...

Sep22026 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

NegOcc resumes hog exports to Iloilo

Business

Negros Occidental has resumed shipping pigs to Iloilo province after maintaining a 40-day African Swine Fever (ASF) free status, Provincial Veterinarian Dr. Placeda Lemana said on Wednesday, September 2.Lemana said the 40-day ASF-free status meets one of Iloilo province's import requirements.Local government units across Negros Occidental have not reported recent cases of ASF in their areas, she said.However, Lemana said that swine shipments from Negros Occidental remain banned in neighboring Cebu.Meanwhile, local pork prices currently range from a low of ₱220 per kilogram to a high of ₱300 per kilogram in public markets, she added.*

Sep22026 by Judy F. PartlowNo Comments

Over 500 pigs culled in NegOr to contain ASF spread

Business

The Provincial Veterinary Office in Negros Oriental said healthy hogs (as shown in the file photo) that have not been exposed to those affected by African swine fever (ASF) will not be depopulated.*BM Woodrow Maquiling Sr. photoThe Provincial Veterinary Office (PVO) in Negros Oriental has culled 539 pigs in July and August as part of efforts to contain the spread of African Swine Fever (ASF), an official said Tuesday, Sept . 1.Vernon Lumbania, PVO officer-in-charge, said that ASF cases continue to be detected in the province despite ongoing containment measures.He said the depopulation included both pigs that tested positive for ASF and those that were not infected but were housed with infected animals.According to the latest weekly report on Aug. 28, active ASF cases were ...

Sep12026 by Carla P. GomezNo Comments

RSSI remains major threat to sugarcane as infestation spreads to 134,385 hectares, Negros worst hit

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A RSSI hit sugarcane field.*SRA photoA total of 134,386.10 hectares have been reported to be affected by the Red Striped Soft-Scale Insect (RSSI) infestation, representing 31.90 percent of the country’s sugarcane plantations nationwide.The Visayas, specifically Negros Occidental, was the worst hit, the Sugar Regulatory Administration (SRA) reported on Tuesday, Sept. 1.The SRA said the reported RSSI-affected areas in the Visayas cover 131,475.66 hectares, or 47.77 percent of its sugarcane fields. This is followed by Mindanao with 2,274.51 hectares (2.32 percent) and Luzon with 753.93 hectares (1.63 percent).Of the total affected area reported as of August 14, the SRA has validated 67,443.76 hectares across 1,093 barangays, affecting 39,281 farmers.Within the ...

Sep12026 by Judy F. PartlowNo Comments

Business chamber, groups seek congressional probe into NORECO II

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Edward Du, president of the Negros Oriental Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said at a press conference on Tuesday.*PNA/Judy Flores Partlow photoThe Negros Oriental Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NOCCI) and other business and sectoral groups are seeking a congressional inquiry into the operations of the Negros Oriental II Electric Cooperative (NORECO II) due to concerns about power reliability and service quality.NOCCI president Edward Du said at a press conference Tuesday, September 1, that they had submitted a position paper to Congress opposing the early renewal of NORECO II’s legislative franchise, which is set to expire in February 2033.“We have three issues: System loss and brownouts, but for the business sector, our primary concern is low voltage, which is the ...

Sep12026 by Digicast NegrosNo Comments

Globe empowers student innovators through Launchpad 2026

Business

Globe leaders join student innovators at Globe Launchpad 2026, where youth-led organizations gain mentorship, funding, and access to Globe 5G and AI-enabled tools to bring their ideas to life.Globe is strengthening its commitment to the youth and their innovation opportunities through Globe Launchpad 2026, a platform under the Globe Student Program that helps youth-led organizations turn bold ideas into real-world solutions. Bringing together 120 student leaders from 50 organizations nationwide, the program provides mentorship from Globe experts, live pitching opportunities, funding, and access to Globe 5G and AI-enabled tools to help participants create meaningful impact in their campuses and communities.The program offered participants hands-on learning experience that mirror...