President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Monday denied claims that there is an artificial power crisis in the country at the back of daily red and yellow alerts declared on Luzon and Visayas grids. 

In a media interview in Cotabato, Marcos attributed the situation to overloaded power systems and the current hot weather caused by the El Niño phenomenon.

"No, it definitely is not an artificial crisis. Our consumption suddenly increased significantly, especially because it has been very hot," Marcos told the reporters.

Marcos assured the public that the government is closely monitoring the situation and actively addressing issues with the power systems.

He also emphasized that the government has already planned and strategized to prevent further increases in electricity prices during this "crisis period."

Marcos pointed the need for improved infrastructure to manage power distribution more effectively.

"We keep telling the NGCP (National Grid Corporation of the Philippines) to start building their long-awaited transmission lines and the submarine cables," Marcos said.

"So that if there is excess electricity in one area, it can be transferred to another area that is lacking," he added.

The President acknowledged that these infrastructure projects were neglected in the past, but vowed to catch up.

Marcos concluded by reiterating the government's commitment to monitoring the power supply and price, while also endorsing programs by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) to expand its transmission line coverage nationwide.

The Department of Energy (DOE) said earlier that the unexpected power outages in over 32 power plants in April 2024 set a record.

A total of 1,811 MW of power were lost, which is more than double the average of 700 megawatts (MW) of power lost from 2019 to 2023. 

NGCP releases a yellow alert if the working margin is not enough to meet the transmission grid's emergency needs.

This means that power outages that happen in certain areas or that happen over time are possible.

On the other hand, NGCP sends out a red alert when there isn't enough power to meet customer needs.

This might cause the power to go out.