Shutdowns drop Luzon power supply down to critical levels

The power supply available to the Luzon grid dropped to critical levels with zero reserves Tuesday morning due to the shutdown of several powerplants.

According to a report on GMA 7's “24 Oras”, the Malampaya Natural Gas Facility, which supplies 300 megawatts (MW) to the Luzon grid, was shutdown for scheduled maintenance.



However, the sudden shutdown of two natural gas-fired powerplants in Batangas, the San Lorenzo Powerplant and Ilijan Powerplant, also on Tuesday morning, left the Luzon grid seriously short of power.

The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NCGP) responded to the shortfall by placing the grid under a red alert. According to NGCP, a red alert condition exists “when the contingency reserve is zero or a generation deficiency exists.”

“Habang nagkakaroon ng change of fuel doon sa San Lorenzo nag-trip yung isang planta doon so nawalan ng 250 megawatts, so that reduced drastically the available reserve. Nagkarooon tayo ng red alert,” said Energy Undersecretary Raul Aguilos.

The Department of Energy (DOE), meanwhile, allowed the temporary operation of the Malaya Thermal Powerplant in Rizal to supply Luzon with more power.

Unfortunately, operating the Malaya plant comes at a cost as it runs on liquid fuel at P12 to P14 per kilowatt hour. Natural gas costs P4 per kilowatt hour.

“Pag tumatakbo yun [ang Malaya Thermal Powerplant], someone has to pay,” Aguilos admitted. “But we really need more capacities. Otherwise, magkakaroon tayo ng problema”

The power supply began to stabilize as the day progressed. By the afternoon, the NGCP downgraded the alert level to “yellow,” in which “the total of all reserves is less than the capacity of the largest plant online, which for the Luzon grid, is 647 MW.”

Nevertheless, power reserves in Luzon remained thin at 400 MW as of Tuesday evening.

The Manila Electric Company (Meralco), meanwhile, refused to categorically confirm whether the higher cost of power from Malaya plant would result in higher rates in the next billing.

“The sourcing of power from generators is a dynamic activity, it happens every hour. We try to optimize from the various sources and try to arrive at the least possible cost,” Larry Fernandez, head of Meralco's Utility Economics department explained.

Also on Tuesday, an NGCP transformer in Dasmariñas, Cavite also went down for a few hours, cutting supply in several parts of Imus, Silang and Tagaytay.

Power supply was restored shortly before 12 p.m. “24 Oras” reported. — Elizabeth Marcelo/DVM, GMA News