Rotational brownouts implemented as Luzon grid goes on 'red alert'

The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines on Monday placed the Luzon Grid on "red alert" and instructs Manila Electric Company (Meralco) to implement rotational brownouts after five power plants were on a forced outage amid the summer heat. 

According to the NGCP, the red alert status for the Luzon grid was raised at 1 p.m. and will last until 4 p.m. and it will be followed by a yellow alert status from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.

NGCP added that the red alert status will again be reinstated from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

A red alert status indicates that there is zero ancillary service or that a generation deficiency exists, while a yellow alert status indicates that the grid has thin reserves.

The NGCP said the available capacity was recorded at 12,186 megawatts, with the peak demand at 12,468 megawatts.

This comes as there were five power plants on forced outage, while three others were running on derated capacities, translating to 1,354 megawatts unavailable to the grid.

Power interruptions

For its part, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) said it is implementing manual load dropping (MLD) or rotational power interruptions of up to two hours in parts of its franchise area, as instructed by the NGCP.

"Ang kailangang gawin ng meralco dito para mapagkasya yung supply sa demand, kelangan natin  magshave ng demand... unfortunately sa pamamagitan sa tinatawag na manual load dropping schedule or rotating power interruptions," said Meralco spokesperson Joe Zaldarriaga in Marisol Abdurahman's report on "24 Oras".

(What we have to do is shave the demand... unfortunately this is done through manual load dropping schedule or rotating power interruptions.)

“We also advised interruptible load program (ILP) participants for possible de-loading from the grid to help ease the situation,” Meralco said in a separate statement.

“We are closely monitoring the situation and are ready to implement additional measures if needed,” it added.

The rotational power interruptions affected about 300,000 customers of the firm in parts of Metro Manila, Rizal, and Cavite after the firm activated the ILP to help manage the situation. It also requested big-load customers to remain on standby until the situation normalized.

“We continue to monitor the situation and are ready to implement measures as needed,” it said.

Meralco constructs, operates, and maintains electric distribution systems in the cities and municipalities of Bulacan, Cavite, Metro Manila, and Rizal, as well as certain areas in the provinces of Batangas, Laguna, Pampanga, and Quezon.

The firm counts as subsidiaries and associates Vantage Energy Solutions and Management Inc. and MeridianX Inc., acting as retail electricity suppliers in Luzon and the Visayas.

Bolo-Masinloc line

The Department of Energy said it is closely monitoring the power situation and is already coordinating with the NGCP on the current power supply condition. 

The DOE also explained that the decrease in the power supply was caused by "the tripping of the Bolo-Masinloc 230 kV Line 2 which led to the tripping of Masinloc Units 1&2 (618 MW)."

In a statement released following the red alert status, the DOE said NGCP has now declared a suspension of the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market in the Luzon Grid.

"The suspension of the WESM will effectively shield the public from volatile prices that may arise from the unavailability of some power plants," said the DOE. —Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas/ VAL, GMA Integrated News