The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has issued red and yellow alerts for both the Luzon and Visayas grids due to insufficient power supply on May 23, 2024.

LUZON GRID

A red alert is in effect from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m, 

A yellow alert is in effect from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m., 5 p.m. to 6 p.m., and 10 p.m. to 12 a.m. of May 24.

The peak demand in Luzon reached 13,597 megawatts while the available capacity stands at 13,531 megawatts.

VISAYAS GRID

A red alert is in effect from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.

A yellow alert is in effect from 12:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m., 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., and from 7:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.

The peak demand in Visayas reached 2,537 megawatts while the available capacity stands at 2,588 megawatts.

BACKGROUND

NGCP said, In Luzon, three power plants have been on forced outage since 2023, four plants between January and March 2024, and 11 between April and May 2024.

In Visayas, one plant has been on forced outage since 2022, two plants since 2023, two plants between January and March 2024, and 16 plants between April and May 2024.

According to NGCP, both Luzon and Visayas have three plants operating at a lower capacity rate, leading to 2,525.5 megawatts unavailable to the Luzon Grid, and 553.1 megawatts unavailable to the Visayas Grid.

A yellow alert is issued when the operating margin falls below the necessary level to meet the transmission grid’s contingency requirement.

A red alert indicates that the power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid’s regulatory requirements.