Stabilizing Visayas power grid comes first, says DOE

CEBU, Philippines — The Department of Energy (DOE) is prioritizing the immediate stabilization of the Visayas power grid as rotational power outages continue to affect communities across the region.

Energy Secretary Sharon Garin made the statement during a virtual press conference on September 7, acknowledging that the current power situation in the Visayas is no longer acceptable.

Garin said Visayan communities have experienced rotational power outages over the past several days and weeks, affecting households, small businesses, hospitals, schools, factories, and other essential services.

“The most expensive electricity is no electricity at all,” Garin said, stressing the need to ensure a sufficient and reliable power supply for the Visayas.

The DOE’s priority, she said, is to restore power as quickly as possible, add backup capacity, and ensure that sufficient reserves are available for the power grid.

“We are restoring power fast, adding backup capacity and holding accountable anyone, power plant or grid operator, who is slowing that down,” she said.

However, Garin stressed that, for now, the immediate focus should be on fixing the problem rather than pointing fingers at those responsible.

“Ang panahon na ito is para ayusin muna. Huwag muna tayo magturuan,” Garin said.

She said accountability would follow once the grid has been stabilized, particularly for power plants or grid operators found to have delayed the restoration of reliable power supply.

One of the major factors behind the tight power supply is the unavailability of several generating units.

Garin explained that when multiple power plants become unavailable at the same time, the system loses the reserve supply it needs to respond when another generating unit unexpectedly goes offline.

“In simple terms, this is the reserve power we need when a plant suddenly encounters a problem,” she said.

She explained that some generating units are kept on standby so they can provide additional power when another generator suddenly shuts down.

However, when only a limited number of generating units are available, the grid can more easily reach a situation where supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand.

The Visayas power grid has been experiencing a series of yellow and red alerts due to the simultaneous outages of several major generating facilities. In recent weeks, the region’s power supply has remained tight because of several plants undergoing forced or preventive outages.

The DOE has said the situation requires both immediate and longer-term measures, including additional generating capacity and energy storage systems to strengthen the grid.

Garin assured the public that the DOE would continue working to restore a stable and reliable power supply in the Visayas. — (FREEMAN)