Visayas grid still on red alert Wednesday
MANILA, Philippines – Red alert remains for the Visayas grid on Wednesday and yellow for Mindanao as capacity remains thin against the requirements.
In an advisory, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) said the red alert for the Visayas grid is from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.
READ: EXPLAINER: Color-coded grid alert statuses and what they mean
A yellow alert is also in effect from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m., and from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m.
According to the NGCP, available capacity is estimated at 2,205 megawatts (MW) while peak demand is projected to hit 2,501 MW.
The NGCP issues a yellow alert when a grid’s operating margin is short of the contingency requirement, and a red alert when capacity is short of both the demand and the contingency requirement.
READ: Power supply woes in Visayas, Mindanao extend to September
In the first two days of September, four power plants in the Visayas were unavailable, led by the major coal-fired power plants Therma Visayas, Inc. (Unit 1) and the Panay Energy Development Corp. (Unit 3).
The NGCP said 24 other power plants have been on forced outage since as far back as 2021, while 16 others have been operating on derated capacities, bringing the total loss to the grid to about 774 MW.
Electricity imports from the Mindanao grid are also affecting the Visayas, which is importing both from Mindanao and Luzon to boost its capacity.
The NGCP said Mindanao is facing some challenges due to the forced outage of Unit 1 of GNPower Kauswagan and Unit 2 of Therma South, Inc.; hence, the yellow alert from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
READ: End to Visayas power woes possible by Aug. 30 – NGCP
Available capacity is at 2,630 MW while peak demand is expected to reach 2,487 MW.
Aside from the forced outage of two major coal-fired power plants servicing the Mindanao grid, 23 power plants have been unavailable since 2024, while seven are operating on derated capacities, bringing the total capacity reduction to about 777.6 MW. (PNA)
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