Power supply in Luzon and the Visayas was temporarily slashed after several power plants simultaneously went offline — leading to temporary power outages in some areas amid a concerning level of heat index.
The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), the country’s lone transmission operator, raised yellow and red alerts across Luzon and Visayas after a total of 42 power plant units were either on forced outage or de-rated with a total capacity of 3,256.8 megawatts (MW) as of 6:30 p.m. yesterday.
The Luzon grid was initially placed under red alert from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. Meanwhile, between 1 p.m. and 2p.m.; 4 p.m. and 6 p.m.; and 9p.m. and 11 p.m., the grid went on yellow alert.
The NGCP initially said that the Luzon grid only has an available capacity of 13,537 megawatts (MW), while peak demand is expected to reach 13,024 MW, which resulted in a thin margin of 513 MW.
Meanwhile, a yellow alert was also raised across the Visayas grid from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. and from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m.
The Visayas grid only had an available capacity of 2,742 MW with a peak demand projected at 2,440 MW — that meant the grid only had 302 MW of reserve capacity.
Later in the afternoon, the NGCP then said that the Visayas grid was also under red alert from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. due to the outage of an additional plant, KSPC 1 at 103MW. A yellow alert was also raised between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m.
Red alert
A red alert status is issued when the power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid’s regulating requirement.
A yellow alert is issued when the operating margin is insufficient to meet the transmission grid’s regulating and contingency requirements. When this status is in place, all power plants must run normally; otherwise, a red alert may be raised.
A red alert, on the other hand, is issued when supplies are insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid’s regulating requirement.
Emergency MLD implemented
In a separate statement, the Manila Electric Co., the country’s largest power distributor, implemented emergency manual load dropping (MLD) affecting around 50,000 customers in portions of Batangas, Bulacan, Cavite and Laguna at 4:15 p.m. All services were fully restored by 5:58 p.m.
To lessen the strain on the power grid, Meralco’s customers under the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) extended their commitment to de-load a collective capacity of more than 300 MW until 9 p.m.
Meanwhile, the Department of Energy, through its Electric Power Industry Management Bureau, is closely monitoring and coordinating with the NGCP and all generation companies on the current power supply condition.
Extreme heat
“While we continue to monitor and ask our power plant operators to work on restoring full operations, we can maximize our energy efficiency efforts as we go through this period of extreme heat,” Secretary Raphael Perpetuo Lotilla said.
“Flexible work arrangements and other conservation measures would also be helpful. The extremely high temperatures have been affecting the operations of power plants in the grid,” he added.
The public is encouraged to minimize the use of electricity during peak hours. This includes turning off lights and unplugging appliances when not in use, and whenever possible, the use of high-energy consuming devices such as aircon and elevator, which can significantly contribute to alleviating the strain on the grid.
