‘Solar plants cannot address Negros power deficit’

BACOLOD CITY, Philippines – The province of Negros Occidental may have become the country’s solar capital, but it is still experiencing insufficient power supply during critical hours, the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines said over the weekend.

Negros Island produces about 500 megawatts (MW) of power from geothermal and solar plants.

NGCP Negros area control center chief Wilmar Gonzaludo said the Negros Island Region suffers from a shortage of 46 MW of electricity daily from 4 p.m. to 9:45 p.m.  despite having excess power supply during daytime due to lack of base load power.

While it is true that Negros has an excess supply because of the mixed generation of solar, geothermal and coal power from Panay, Gonzaludo said the island’s solar power plants could not make up for the deficit because it is only available during daytime or on days when the sun is out.

He said the solar plants do not have enough batteries to store power.

These plants have a total maximum installed capacity of 300 MW, mostly concentrated in northern Negros, particularly in the cities of Cadiz and San Carlos.

Gonzaludo said the island gets its base load power from geothermal power and coal plants.

The Energy Development Corp. (EDC) is currently producing 222.5 MW in the region. It has applied for an additional 60 MW of clean geothermal power to address the demands of the region’s growing economy.

The island has abundant geothermal sources, which to date is the only form of renewable energy that can provide clean, sustainable base load power or power that is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the EDC said.

Gonzaludo said geothermal power is the most stable form of renewable energy.