Over P53 billion grid expansion projects await ERC approval

MANILA, Philippines — Power transmission projects totaling over P53 billion are stuck in limbo, waiting for the go-signal from the Energy Regulatory Commission.

The ERC has resolved to defer the approval of at least nine capital expenditure projects proposed by the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP), citing “pending issues” that needed to be addressed.

“We just need some items verified and updated because this set is tied to other ongoing projects. Then, it will be submitted for deliberation again,” ERC chairperson and CEO Monalisa Dimalanta said yesterday.

Dimalanta said the commission intends to resolve the matter “soon.”

The NGCP, the country’s sole transmission operator, filed an application in 2021 seeking regulatory approval for the implementation of 15 grid projects across the country.

So far, only six transmission projects have secured the green light from the ERC.

In Luzon, the pending projects include the P13.3-billion Nagsaag-Santiago 500-kiloVolt line, the P6.83-billion Cabanatuan-Sampaloc-Nagsaag 230-kV line, the P18.96-billion Western Luzon 500-kV backbone and the P2.39-billion Bauang-La Trinidad 230-kV line upgrading.

Similarly, the P3.57-billion Nivel Hills 230-kV substation project in the Visayas has yet to be approved.

Also awaiting approval are four projects in Mindanao, namely the P610.87-million Agus 6-Kiwalan-Lugait 69-kV line upgrading, the P1.03-billion Maco-Tagum 69-kV line, the P5.89-billion Sultan Kudarat-Tacurong 230-kV line and the P885.4-million Opol substation bus-in.

Pursuant to the Electric Power Industry Reform Act, the grid operator is required to seek prior regulatory approval for any plan to expand or improve its facilities.

A privately owned corporation, the NGCP has invested over P300 billion since 2009 to augment the country’s electrical superhighway.