ERC probes series of red, yellow alerts raised over Luzon, Visayas grids

The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has begun its preliminary investigation into the three consecutive days of red and yellow alerts hoisted over the Luzon and Visayas grids.

In a text message, ERC chairperson Monalisa Dimalanta said the power industry regulator is conducting a preliminary investigation into the recent power situation.

“We will schedule meetings with involved stakeholders soon for the formal investigation,” Dimalanta said.

The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines announced that the Luzon grid will be placed under red alert anew on Thursday from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m.

A red alert status is issued when power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid’s regulating requirement.

A yellow alert will also be hoisted in the Luzon grid from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., and 10 p.m. to 11 p.m.

A yellow alert is issued when the operating margin is insufficient to meet the transmission grid’s contingency requirement.

The NGCP said the Luzon grid has an available capacity of 13,397 megawatts (MW) against a peak demand of 12,892 MW).

The grid operator said 19 power plants are on forced outage, while one is running on derated capacity, for a total of 1,891.3MW unavailable to the Luzon grid.

The Visayas grid, likewise, will be placed under yellow alert from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. as available capacity only stands at 2,662 MW against a peak demand of 2,465 MW.

The NGCP said 13 power plants are on forced outage, while nine others are running on derated capacities, for a total of 696.7MW unavailable to the Visayas grid.

Dimalanta said the ERC is still collating information from the various plants as well as from the NGCP. 

“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,” she said.

“We are still conducting our preliminary investigation and then will call on the plants and NGCP for vetting,” she added.

In a separate statement, the ERC said the following information were submitted by generation companies concerning the power situation:

In Luzon 

• Prior to April 16, around 27 units were already on outage – four on planned outage, while 23 were on unplanned or forced outage over the period of March-April 2024. Among the units on unplanned outage, eight were out due to equipment-related or non-fuel issues, while 15 attributed the outage to fuel (water or steam) issues.

• On April 16, additional 14 units went down – one as per scheduled maintenance, and the rest on unplanned or forced outage. The outage of five of the latter 13 units was due to equipment or non-fuel causes, while eight reported fuel or insufficient water level issues.

• A total of 3,233.68MW was out of the system as of April 16. As of 10:00 a.m., April 18, around 1,179.52MW of capacity has been restored, leaving a total of 2,054.16MW still on outage.

In Visayas

• Prior to April 16, 13 units were already on outage – one on planned or scheduled maintenance, while 12 on unplanned or forced outage over the period of March-April 2024. Among the units on unplanned outage, seven reported equipment or non-fuel issues, while four attributed the outage to fuel (water or feedstock) issues.

• On April 16, additional 12 units went down – one as per scheduled maintenance, and the rest on unplanned or forced outage. The outage of nine of these units were due to equipment or non-fuel causes, while two reported fuel issues.

• A total of 890.51MW was out of the system as of 16 April 2024. As of 10 a.m., April 18, around 272.72MW of capacity has been restored, leaving a total of 617.79MW still on outage.

Energy Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan earlier explained that the grids being placed on yellow or red alerts doesn’t automatically mean that power outages will occur. 

Marasigan said the DOE expects the affected power plants to be repaired by Saturday, April 20. 

Earlier this month, the DOE said the power sector is implementing measures to avoid possible power interruptions amid the impact of the El Niño phenomenon and dry season on the country.

In a separate statement, the Department of Energy (DOE) said it continues to closely monitor and coordinate with the NGCP and all generation companies during this period of extreme heat where electricity usage is at a record high. 

The DOE also reiterated its call for everyone’s cooperation in minimizing power consumption specially at peak hours during the remainder of the hot season. 

“The DOE is likewise coordinating with the concerned generation companies for the return to service of power plants under forced outage. At the same time, all parties are reminded of their compliance with the Grid Operating and Maintenance Program (GOMP),” the DOE said. —AOL/KBK, GMA Integrated News