NGCP cleared to start works on P727 million Calamba substation

MANILA, Philippines — The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) secured the green light from the Energy Regulatory Commission to  pursue its P727-million substation project in Calamba, Laguna to improve power service and meet the growing power demand in the province.

The 230-kilovolt (kV) substation project, which was originally estimated to cost P883 million, will serve the Laguna sector of Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), the country’s biggest power distributor.

It will have a capacity of 600 megavolt-amperes (MVA) to serve the industrial parks in Laguna and Batangas.

Meralco’s Laguna sector is NGCP’s largest customer and is currently tapping electricity from 230/115kV NGCP substations. These are the Biñan, Malamig (Sta. Rosa), and Calauan substations.

The addition of the Calamba substation would ease the load from the existing Malamig and Calauan substations during power outages, which would in turn secure the transmission of electricity in Laguna.

The Calamba 230-kV substation project would also address the required N-1 contingency that will support the bulk of the load in the area.

The N-1 contingency is a requirement under the Philippine Grid Code, which refers to the ability of the grid to withstand the loss of a major system component with minimal disruption in the system.

NGCP is also required to conduct competitive bidding in the implementation of the proposed projects.