TAGUIG CITY – The Department of Energy (DOE) today assured the public of stable power supply in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao for the period of March to June 2019, during the press briefing on the Summer Power Outlook conducted at the agency’s headquarters.
The briefing was led by DOE Spokesperson and Undersecretary Felix William B. Fuentebella, together with Assistant Secretary Redentor E. Delola, and DOE-Electric Power Industry Management Bureau Director Mario C. Marasigan.
A summer situationer was presented, which featured two scenarios. The first was a baseline depicting normal hydro capacities in the Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao grids. The second scenario forecasted the weak El Niño conditions provided by the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical, Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA), where the DOE adjusted the output hydroelectric power plant (HEPP) capacities equivalent to a 30% reduction in the Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao grids on the basis of the 2016 HEPP historical data.
While El Niño is seen to have the greatest impact in Luzon due to the number of HEPPs in the area, the grid will continue to be under normal conditions.
In the Visayas, power conditions would likewise be normal given the minimal number of HEPPs and the marginal HEPP contribution share of 0.6% of the dependable capacity in the region.
Similarly, the Mindanao grid will also be stable despite having a hydro capacity share of 27.5%, due to the contributing capacities of coal-fired power plants.
In the instance of forced outages in the Luzon Grid, there will be an additional 350-megawatt (MW) buffer on top of the Scenario 2 projection, with 200MW “importation” coming from the Visayas Grid and 150 MW coming from the remaining Malaya Diesel Power Plant.
SUPPLY-SIDE AND DEMAND-SIDE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES
The DOE underscored the importance of various approaches being pursued by the energy family to ensure the continuous and efficient electricity services in the midst of the El Niño phenomenon and the mid-term elections in May. These include the the management of plant maintenance schedules, the optimization of existing HEPP, the preparation of available generator sets for unforeseen outages, the participation of big establishments in the Interruptible Load Program, as well as the continued call for an energy efficiency for the electricity end-users.
DOE Secretary Alfonso G. Cusi emphasized, “While there will be sufficient power throughout this summer, we continue to call on our kababayans to observe energy efficient practices, such as setting out air conditioner thermostats to 24 or 25 degrees Celcius, regardless of power supply conditions. Energy efficiency and the mindful consumption of electricity should be our way of life.”
He further added the significance of integrating a strong culture of energy resilience within the industry to ensure the security of crucial infrastructure in the face of natural and human-induced disasters.
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