Visayan Electric Company Visayan Electric Company (VECO) is the second largest electric utility in the Philippines and

serves the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay and Naga and four municipalities of the greater part of Metro Cebu Liloan, Consolacion, Minglanillla and San Fernando. Its franchise service covers an area of about 672 square kilometers with an estimated population of 1.73 million.

History VECO was founded in 1905 by a group of Cebu businessmen led by Messrs. M. Levering, A. Bryan, R. Landon and A. Pond. It started with an 800 kW generating facility by the Cebu pier. By 1918 the Escao family had acquired control and began expanding both the generation capacity and the distribution network. During the Second World War the United States Armed Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) bombed all the generation units in order to deprive the occupying Japanese forces control of the network. In December 1945, with the war over, VECO was back in business delivering power to its customers. LEGISLATIVE ORDER VECO was granted its legislative franchise under Act No. 3499 which was approved by the Philippine Legislature in 1928. It authorized VECO to install, operate and maintain electric light, heat and power system in the Municipalities of Cebu (now City), Talisay (now City), Minglanilla, Naga, San Fernando, Mandaue (now City), Consolacion, Liloan and Compostela. The period of existence of the franchise was for 50 years. This was subsequently extended for another 25 years by RA 6454 which took effect in 1972. In 2005, RA 9339 was signed extending the term of VECO's franchise for another 25 years. At present, VECO's franchise area covers the cities of Cebu, Mandaue, Talisay and Naga plus the municipalities of Consolacion, Liloan, Minglanilla and San Fernando. VECO utilizes various state-of-the-art technologies in its operations to improve its efficiency and service. It uses a SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system to monitor and control its electric distribution assets via remote control. It also has a GIS (Geographic Information System) to map and manage its facilities.[4] In early 2005, VECO opened a full service center at SM City Cebu with a Call Center equipped with Voice Over Internet Protocol (VoIP) telephone sysetm integrated with a Customer Relation Management System (CRMS). A second, albeit smaller, full service center also opened in Talisay City in 2007 to attend to the needs of customers in the southern part of the franchise area. VECO is owned and managed by publicly listed Aboitiz Power Corporation (PSE: AP) and Vivant Corporation. Approximately 800 individual shareholders comprise the VECO shareholders' roster.

Natures Spring Mineral Water in Cebu City

Cebu is home of the best bottled water in the country. Nature Spring Water has been a name which you can trust when it comes to bottled water. Operated by the Philippine Spring Water and Resources, Inc. (PSWRI), What is natures spring Natures Spring water is sold both in local and international markets. To make sure that their water is clean and safe to drink they use the latest technology and equipment. Internal PSWRI laboratory tests, and external regular monitoring and inspection by the Bureau of Food and Drugs (BFAD) and the Philippine Bottled Water Standard prove the companys strict and meticulous eye for quality control and utmost norms PSWRI passed the very strict standards. Products they serve This brand is so safe that it is awarded many certificates both here and abroad. The products of Natures Spring Water are Purified Bottled Water, Distilled Bottled Water, Alkaline Bottled Water, Bubble Bottled Water, Crystal Tube Ice, Five Gallons, Specialized Packaging, and Bai Products. Back then they had these flavored water that comes in apple, grape, lemon, and honeydew flavors but they discontinued it because of the low market. New Products on the rise The company is now promoting the drinking of PH 9 alkaline water that combats acid build up due to stress or wrong food choices. Natures Spring PH 9 Drinking water is a bottled water process through state-of-the art water treatment technology such as the modern filtration, purification , ozonation to guarantee its quality and water ionizer machine to produce water higher in ph via the scientific process of electrolysis.

The start of the Company The company was conceived in 1991 when the super typhoon Ruping hit Cebu. The devastation was so great that there was no way of delivery safe drinkable water to the Cebuanos. There are only very few water companies then and the foreign brands were too expensive. The founder of the company felt that Cebu and the whole country needed to have a stable and affordable source of safe drinking water. The founder went to the United States of America to learn on how to create safe drinking water. When he came back he started the company and is now the biggest distilled water distributor in the country. So whenever you feel thirsty you can always look at Natures Spring Water to help you quench that thirst with the safe and reliable water they have developed these past years.

The first plant and production facility was put up after a thorough market research and extensive product conceptualization and development. They were also aided by foreign expert consultants. They opened their first and biggest plant and office facilities at A.C. Cortes, Avenue, Cambaro, Mandaue City. Currently a leader in the purified bottled drinking water in the country, Natures Spring has three huge production facilities. For the Luzon market, they are located in Guiguinto, Bulacan and Calamba, Laguna. In Mindanao, the plant is located in Cagayan de Oro City. They also have five small plants in major locations in the country. Natures Spring currently holds around 50 percent of the countrys bottled water market. It aims to further increase its share through the adoption of world-class technology. The company that has been around for more than 20 years is currently making use of an Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system made by the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM). The structure allows them to efficiently structure its business processes and improve operations. This technology is indeed a great milestone in the Information Technology (IT) industry the country. According to the brand, the exploitation of the new system resulted in automation, traceability, and accountability of its operations, which streamlined and increased operational production efficiency in its product lines. With its unrelenting success, Natures Spring Water gives back to the Filipino community by stepping up during calamities. They provide free supply of deep well water or non-processed water and discounts on their bottled water. They also believe their corporate social responsibility in education and tourism means opening their plant gates to the public by allowing educational tours within their facilities. This also ensures transparency and confidence in quality.

Moreover, to lessen their impact on the environment, Natures Spring uses a shorter cap in their bottles. This means that the bottles used contain 35% less plastic than other brands. Their plastic is currently the lightest in Southeast Asia. For more information on Nature Spring, you may call their Cebu office at (032) 346-2008 or visit their official Web site at naturespring.com.ph. You may also follow them on Facebook atfacebook.com/naturespring.

Salcon Power Corporation

In 1994, a consortium led by Salcon Philippines, Inc. won the bidding of the National Power Corporation's (NPC) rehabilitation, operation, maintenance, and management (ROMM) contract for the Naga Power Plant Complex in Cebu. The year marked the birth of Salcon Power Corporation, or SPC, which was formed to fulfill our obligitions under the ROMM contract, and more importantly, a mission to provide Cebu with a sustainable source of power. As a publicly listed Philippine corporation, SPC is authorized to primarily engaged in the design, construction, rehabilitation, operation, maintenance and management of power generation, supply and distribution of plants and related facilities.
From 1994 to 1997, we have extensively upgraded and continuously maintained the facilities of the Naga Power Plant Complex. Armed with the primary business objective of increasing our involvement in power related projects in the Philippines, we have, since then, entered into joint ventures, acquired equity interest, signed technical services agreements, and have vied for similar government contracts.

We intend to go beyond Philippines shores. In the medium term, we intend to participate in the international power sector as well. We plan to achieve this by continuing our current strategy of focusing on our core competencies. Our short-term projects are in line with our long-term goals. For instance, our joint ventures are part of our strategy to increase involvement with the power sector, and at the same time, our technical services agreements help us realize our strategy of providing technical, operational, and management services to private power plant operators and electric distributors. Our plans for expansion are backed by Salcon Philippines, Inc. and Salcon Limited of Singapore. Salcon Philippines Inc. is the Philippine subsidiary of Salcon Limited. Salcon Limited is engaged in the development of the water treatment plants, waste water treatment plants, palm oil mills, and liquid storage tanks.