Luzon, Visayas grids under yellow alert anew on Tuesday

The Luzon and Visayas grids will be placed under yellow alert status anew on Tuesday afternoon, as a number of plants remain either on forced outage or on derated capacities.

In an advisory, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said the Luzon Grid will be placed under yellow alert from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21, 2024.

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

NGCP said Tuesday that the Luzon grid had an available capacity of 14,687 megawatts, versus a peak demand of 13,507 megawatts as areas in the country are projected to experience extreme heat conditions.

The grid currently has 1,075.8 megawatts unavailable, as three plants have been on forced outage since 2023, four between January and March 2024, and 11 between April and May, while six are running on derated capacities.

The Visayas Grid will also be placed under yellow alert from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., and from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Tuesday, with an available capacity of 2,933 megawatts against a peak demand of 2,614 megawatts.

One plant has been on forced outage since 2022, two since 2023, two between January and March 2024, and 11 between April and May, while five are running on derated capacities for a total of 514.1 megawatts unavailable to the grid.

The Department of Energy (DOE) earlier said more yellow and red alerts are expected in the coming weeks, as the country has already exceeded its forecasted demand given the prevailing heat levels due to El Niño.

Face-to-face classes in several areas in Metro Manila and Luzon have also been suspended due to extreme heat conditions, with schools advised to shift to asynchronous or alternative learning modalities.

For its part, the Department of Health (DOH) has advised the public to use alternative cooling techniques such as using a wet towel, and sprinkling water using a spray bottle to combat the heat. —VAL, GMA Integrated News