The National Broadcaster, Vanuatu Broadcasting and Television Corporation (VBTC) resumed its normal airwave transmissions at 10:45am (local time) today.
The station's broadcast services were affected after the power company, Unelco, shut down its power connection last Thursday.
Listeners and viewers of the media components of VBTC, Paradise FM 98, Radio Vanuatu and Television Blong Vanuatu (TBV) were shocked when transmission were cut off after assurances that its transmissions had reached out throughout the archipelago.
It occurred when Radio Vanuatu and TBV were broadcasting the Special Sitting of Parliament on Thursday that was boycotted by the Opposition solidarity bloc.
Since that Thursday, the state-owned entity had been running on a standby generator until it could no longer withstand the pressure, and was forced to cease operating. All, (i.e. .the Paradise FM, Radio Vanuatu’s FM 100 frequency, the shortwave and the medium waves) came to a standstill some 15 minutes before President Baldwin Lonsdale ended his moving and challenging speech at the First Ordinary Siting of Parliament that was nullified by the Supreme Court.
This is not the first time electricity services were cut off to the main transmitters due to accumulated bills. About the same time last year, a VT12 million debt forced Unelco to disconnect the power to the transmitters.
Recently, the chairman of VBTC, Johnety Jerety confirmed that the company had been doing well in terms of settling its debts.
It is believed that company debts with Unelco has been reduced significantly to half, from VT12 million in 2015 to about VT6 million this year. The last payment was made last month at an amount of VT1 million.
The disruption of the power supply had also been affecting VBTC’s new VT500 million TV project initiative through the joint partnership agreement with CEKE Company which is a manufacturing and exporting company in China.
Meanwhile, the second biggest broadcasting company in Vanuatu, Capital FM 107 is now under the receivership of Pacific Advisory.
Capital FM had for a while been facing difficulties in meeting its financial obligations until recently when it was forced to go under receivership.