Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho L. Petilla expects a stabilized power situation for the Luzon grid this summer, with power plants expected to have less forced outages.
“Way above the 647-megawatt [MW] reserve, and when I check the outlook for forced outages, it’s very low,” Petilla told reporters.
He noted his only concern is when the Sual coal-fired power plant, the biggest power plant in Luzon, goes on forced outage. Sual serves as the basis for the contingency reserve at 647 MW.
Petilla said the only power plant that shut down so far is the 600-MW GNPower. But he said this is not being considered in the outlooks due to the plant’s frequent outages. Petilla said he initially expected power plants with total capacity of 1,800 MW would go on forced outages.
However, Petilla said the warnings of the Department of Energy (DOE) that it will monitor and even visit the plants that will breakdown had paid off. “We told the generators, ‘We will monitor, we will go to you if you breakdown,’” he said.
The DOE chief added: “The forced outages are low right now, probably because of the warning. But if I didn’t raise hell, do you see that the outages will be lower? If I didn’t raise an alarm, it won’t happen.”
Petilla also said the weather is playing a role in the stable power-supply situation, as typhoons entering the country will keep the temperature low.
The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), he added, also issued a resolution that mandates generation companies to submit a complete report upon their breakdown.
ERC Resolution 4 orders generation companies to report to the agency initial details regarding their forced outages within three hours, and will be followed by a more detailed report within 48 hours.
The resolution also orders generation companies to report upon its power plant’s return to operations.
Juzel L. Danganan, PNA