Baguio City – The city is looking for a private entity that is willing to partner with the local government for the put up of an oxygen plant to ensure the stable supply of oxygen not only in the city but also in neighboring localities, especially during the ongoing Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
Mayor Benjamin B. Magalong tasked City Administrator Bonifacio dela Pen֮a to coordinate with various private entities involved in the put up of oxygen plants to ascertain their capability of putting the same in the city through the public-private partnership scheme pursuant to the city’s Public-Private Partnership for the People ordinance.
He claimed that the existence of an oxygen plant in the city will help in ensuring the stable supply of oxygen for the various public and private health facilities needing the same to cater to the oxygen requirements of their patients and for other important purposes not only during the ongoing pandemic but also for future needs.
At present, the Baguio General Hospital and Medical Center (BGHMC) has its own oxygen plant that is undergoing upgrading to increase its production capacity to address the increasing demand for oxygen primarily by COVID-19 patients for them to recover from their severe or critical condition.
For his part, dela PenÖ®a stated that the local government wants to replicate the oxygen plant that was established by the Ilocos Sur provincial government to serve the needs of the different health facilities in the province following the increase in the demand for oxygen that was triggered by the surge in COVID-19 cases as a result of the more infectious Delta variant.
He added that the local government needs around P55 to 65 million to put up an oxygen plant and the best way to undertake the project is to look for capable private companies involved in the put up of said plants who are interested to partner with the local government to ensure the immediate establishment of the said facility because of the drastic increase in the demand for oxygen among confined severe and critical COVID-19 patients.
According to him, except for BGHMC that has its own oxygen plant, the city and other private health facilities are relying on the supply of oxygen from existing suppliers to cater to the growing demand for oxygen by COVID-19 patients that need to recover from the said infection.
The city administrator assured that the local government has sufficient stock of oxygen and oxygen tanks that will be used by COVID-19 patients confined in the various isolation centers in the city who need the same to ensure their speedy recovery from the deadly virus.
Earlier, the local government procured a significant number of oxygen tanks which are now being used to cater to the oxygen requirements of COVID-19 patients confined in the different health facilities and isolation centers due to the surge in cases that started over a month ago as a result of the presence of the more infectious Delta variant.
He stipulated that the local government is doing its best to ensure the stability of the supply of oxygen in the city due to the sudden increase in the demand for the said important product needed to allow the speedy recovery of COVID-19 patients from the infection that they have contracted. (Photo courtesy by Joseph Manzano)