Panay power outage probe completed in 6-8 weeks -ERC

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) would complete its probe into this week's massive Panay Island power outage in six to eight weeks.

At the Saturday News Forum, ERC Chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta said that the agency took six weeks to finish its investigation into a similar Negros and Panay power outage in late April last year.

Asked why authorities, including President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., seemed to put all the blame on the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines, the ERC chief said, “It’s because [NGCP] is the main actor. It is the system operator.”

Marcos and Department of Energy Secretary Raphael Lotilla said the NGCP could have prevented the power outage had it acted during a two-hour window to prevent a system collapse.

The NGCP, in its defense, stood firm that the system, before the multiple tripping of power plant units, was normal, and its actions were within protocols.

Earlier this week, a massive power outage hit Panay Island due to multiple tripping of the island's power plants.

At noon on January 2, Dimalanta said a Panay Energy Development Corporation (PEDC) plant collapsed, but the power supply was unaffected.

After two hours, however, six other large units consecutively collapsed, which caused the entire system to shut down.

Dimalanta reiterated that Panay Island's electricity supply had been restored as the region's power plants resumed operations on Friday afternoon.

Dimalanta, nonetheless, said the NGCP was not the only entity that could be held accountable for the incident but also the operators of the tripped power plants.

Possible fines and penalties, at a maximum of P50 million per violation, would be determined upon completion of the investigation.

“Hindi po din natin basta ine-excuse ang mga planta. Kasi pwedeng doon sa anim na planta, meron ba doon na hindi nag-maintain ng standards? For example, meron po ba doong bumitaw ng mas maaga under the Grid Code? Kapag po ganoon, may penalty din po siya. Hindi lang po NGCP kung nakita po talaga natin na hindi niya ginawa ang trabaho niya,” Dimalanta said. — DVM, GMA Integrated News