Facing prolonged Visayas power issues, DOE rolls out interventions
CEBU CITY, Philippines – Consumers in the Visayas should brace for possibly more rotational brownouts as the region’s grid will likely remain strained in the coming weeks, according to energy stakeholders.
The Department of Energy (DOE) on Monday, June 1, forecast that the available supply in the Visayas grid will continue to fall below peak demand levels in the coming weeks.
Energy Secretary Sharon Garin expressed worry over the energy issues in the region, which includes Cebu that consumes nearly half of the supply from the grid.
READ MORE: Grid outlook: Visayas power crunch drags into June
Augmenting Visayas power supply
During Monday’s briefing, the Cabinet official assured that the government is fast-tracking solutions, including ancillary services, to augment power supply.
“On the Visayas side, this will be a prolonged problem because… mahaba kasi ang coordination na kailangan (this will take some time to coordinate)…. So in the interim, hindi pwedeng maghintay lang, kaya pinupunan natin ng mga (we cannot simply wait, so we will add) temporary energy supply for the next year or two years,” Garin told reporters.
Actual demand in the Visayas region may hit as high as 2,700 megawatts (MW) during peak hours. But the supply can only reach up to 2,044 MW, said Energy Undersecretary Mario Marasigan.
Reactivating coal plants for Visayas power supply
Forced outages of four major generation facilities in the Visayas, combined with high electricity demand during the hot, dry season, have been cited as primary reasons behind the region’s thinning power supply.
Since then, a total of around 400 MW has become unavailable for the Visayas grid. This resulted in at least 17 yellow alerts and red alerts since May.
While power imports from Luzon and Mindanao have helped prevent a system collapse, the DOE will be implementing additional strategies.
On Monday, June 1, the energy department announced its plans to reactivate several coal-fired plants in the Visayas, including those in Cebu.
Power barges, generator sets, BESS
The Naga City-based KEPCO (Korea Electric Power Corp.) Unit 2 will return to service on Tuesday, June 2. PEDC (Panay Energy Development Corp.) Unit 3 will resume operations on July 3, according to Marasigan.
Meanwhile, two units of Therma Visayas Inc. (TVI) in Toledo City will be back online sometime in late August. The two plants were among those placed under forced outages due to repairs and maintenance.
The DOE has also pursued additional ancillary service facilities. The Visayas grid needed at least 150 MW of power reserve to ensure stability and reliability, said Garin.
These ancillary facilities include diesel power barges, modular generator sets, and battery energy storage systems (BESS), such as the 30-megawatt BESS project in Mactan, Cebu.
What else? Direct negotiations urged
According to Garin, the BESS facility in Mactan is undergoing testing and commissioning.
“Hopefully, within the month, we can bring in these additional power supplies to the Visayas,” Garin added.
Likewise, the energy department has formally written the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), urging it to take advantage of policies that allow direct negotiation for ancillary services.
“The parameters needed to proceed with direct negotiation have already been met. We frequently experience yellow and red alerts, indicating insufficient supply, and the cost of maintaining reserves is already being passed on to consumers,” explained Marasigan.
In the long run, the DOE looks at establishing two solar energy projects in Panay, with the combined capacity to generate additional 69 MW of electricity, to address the power shortage.
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