DOE still looking for root cause of Mindanao blackout

The root cause of the widespread blackout in Mindanao on Thursday is still unknown but the Energy department expects to find out by next week, according to a report on "Balitanghali" aired Saturday.

 

 

The report also said the rotational brownouts in Mindanao have pushed some businesses to rely on generators that are now being overworked.

 

In Zamboanga Del Sur, the usual two-hour rotational brownouts have extended to four hours.

 

The rotational brownouts are caused by two units of a coal-fired power plant in Villanueva, Misamis Oriental that are still offline.

 

The power plant trippings started in the Agus 1 Hydroelectric Powerplant in Marawi City, the Department of Energy (DOE) said in a press release on Friday.

 

“The tripping is due to some line faults or system disturbance which are outside the control of our power plant,” engineer Rudy Brioso, vice president of the National Power Corp., said in the report.

 

Initial reports suggested that the power failure may have started from a faulty breaker in the switchyard of Agus 1, DOE said in a press release. The breaker or the switchyard of the powerplants is the facility that links the powerplant to the transmission network.

 

“Partly kalumaan rin yun kung tutuusin,” Energy Secretary Jericho Petilla said on the "Balitanghali" report. The breaker was set to be repaired in 12 months according to the schedule approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC).

 

National Power Corp. said, however, that the powerplants are carefully maintained and that there are no problems with their equipment.

 

The DOE, along with National Power Corp., National Transmission Corp. (TransCo), and the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines(NGCP), is “closely monitoring” the power situation in Mindanao, the press release said.

 

The NGCP reported earlier that the Mindanao grid has been fully re-energized, which means transmission is back to normal.

 

“All highways are open to transmit the available electricity,” NGCP spokesperson Cynthia Alabanza said in a text message to GMA News Online on Saturday.

However, she said that there is still a 300-450MW deficiency as per NGCP's monitoring of the supply connected to the grid. - Kim Luces/JDS, GMA News