DOE reassures public: No power issues for dry season, May polls

The Department of Energy (DOE) on Friday reassured the public that there will be no inadvertent power issues during the dry season which coincides within the May 9, 2022 elections period.

“Sa aming pagtaya ng mga submission ng stakeholders, sa ngayon, so far wala pa namang nakikitang specific concerns na pwedeng makaapekto sa supply ng kuryente lalong lalo na sa preparasyon sa election,” Power Industry Management Bureau Director Mario Marasigan said in an interview on Dobol B TV.

(In our estimation of the submissions of stakeholders, so far we are not seeing any specific concerns that might affect power supply especially during our preparation for the elections.)

“Sa ngayon po, hindi namin nakikita na magkakaron tayo ng mga alert level pagdating sa supply ng kuryente” (For now, we do not see that there will be a raising of power supply alert level), Marasigan added.

The Energy official made the clarification after the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) warned of thin operating margins from April to June, which includes the critical election period, due to an expected increase in demand.

Marasigan explained that thin operating margins means that power reserves are thin, not the actual supply. “Hindi naman sinasabi na magkakaroon ng brownout” (It does not say there will be brownouts). 

Earlier, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi expressed skepticism about NGCP's warning of thin power supply conditions during the dry season as it hit the grid operator for issuing such a warning when it should be ensuring adequate supply. 

Nonetheless, Marasigan said the DOE is coordinating with the NGCP, Energy Regulatory Commission, and other electric power industry stakeholders to ensure continuous and reliable supply of energy during the dry season and elections period.

However, he said that “uncontrollable situations” might affect the power situation such as forced shutdowns of power plants, but assured the DOE is already looking at ways to avert such problems.

“Hindi papayagan ng kahit sinong planta ng kuryente na mag-maintain ng kanilang mga planta during the peak period ng summer, so April, May, and June bawal ang mag-conduct ng preventive maintenance, except po sa sa hydro power,” Marasigan said, noting that water supply needed to run hydro power plants are usually lower during the dry season.

(We will not allow any power plant to maintain their facilities during the peak period of summer, so in April, May, and June they are not allowed to conduct preventive maintenance, except for hydro power.) —LBG, GMA News