MORE Power warns of potential power interruptions in Iloilo

Razon-led MORE Electric and Power Corp. on Thursday advised its customers of possible rotational power interruption in its franchise area, citing insufficient power generation supply due to the unavailability of a power plant.

In an advisory, MORE Power cited the expected unavailability of a power plant for the next three to five days, causing the insufficient generation of power and leading to manual load drops (MLDs).

“Though this is just a possibility of MLD, we advise our consumers to be more efficient in using electricity and be prepared for possible outage affecting your area,” the advisory read.

MORE Power, as declared by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) in March 2020, is the sole power distributor in Iloilo City, as it took over from Panay Electric Company (PECO).

The company’s advisory comes as the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said MLD may be implemented in several areas on Thursday evening to “maintain the integrity” of the power system.??

Among those covered in the Negros subgrid are portions of the Central Negros Electric Cooperative (CENECO), Negros Occidental Electric Cooperative (NOCECO), Northern Negros Electric Cooperative (NONECO), and the Negros Oriental Electric Cooperative (NORECO) I and II.

Meanwhile, those covered in the Panay subgrid are portions of MORE Power, Guimaras Electric Cooperative (Guimelco), Iloilo Electric Cooperative (ILECO) I, II, and III, Antique Electric Cooperative (ANTECO), Capiz Electric Cooperative (CAPELCO), and Aklan Electric Cooperative (AKELCO).

“The unresolved internal issues of the remaining power plants… qualify as a significant threat to system security… and justifies manual intervention by the System Operator NGCP,” it said.

The NGCP on Wednesday, January 17, reported the unplanned outage of PEDC Unit 3 on Wednesday, January 17, causing unscheduled power interruptions in the Negros and Panay sub-grid around 6:48 p.m.

The NGCP power in affected electric cooperatives and distribution utilities were restored at 7:07 p.m., but more interruptions could take place due to the unresolved internal issues of the remaining major power plants.

“(F)ollowing DOE (Department of Energy) and ERC instructions, another MLD may be implemented in the event of the tripping of another large plant in the Panay sub-grid,” the NGCP said in a separate advisory.

The NGCP has set a P160-billion spending program for 2022 to 2025, mainly to finance new and ongoing transmission projects.

The NGCP is 40% owned by the State Grid Corporation of China, while Henry Sy Jr.’s Monte Oro Grid Resources Corp. and Robert Coyiuto Jr.’s Calaca High Power Corp. each hold 30%. The consortium holds a 25-year concession contract and a 50-year franchise to operate the country’s power transmission network.—RF, GMA Integrated News