THE National Grid Corporation of the Philippines announced that for the fourth straight day, Luzon and Visayas remain as having a thin power supply, wth power plants breaking down due to the extreme heat this dry season coupled with the El Nino.
According to the NGCP the red alert was raised over the Luzon grid from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m.
A red alert status is being raised when the power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand.
Meanwhile, a yellow alert Luzon grid is scheduled from 12 noon to 3 p.m., 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., and 10 p.m. to 11 p.m.
A yellow alert is being issued when the operating margin is not sufficient for the transmission grid’s contingency requirement.
According to the NGCP the Luzon grid carries a capacity of 13,594 megawatts (MW) against an expected peak demand of 13,127 MW.
“Nineteen power plants are on forced outage, while three are running on derated capacities, for a total of 2,284.3 MW unavailable to the grid,” the NGCP said.
On the other hand, the NGCP likewise placed Visayas under yellow alert from 12 noon to 4 p.m. and from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Data said that the Visayas grid carries an available capacity of 2,614 MW against an expected peak demand of 2,445 MW.
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) had declared that they had initiated their preliminary investigation into the series of red and yellow alerts.
“After our initial evaluation, we can then decide if there is ground to formalize the investigation for purposes of determination of liabilities and imposition of penalties,” ERC chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta said.
