MANILA, Philippines (Philippines News Agency) – The national polls in May affected the energy capacity in Luzon, resulting in power outages during the last week of July to the first week of August, Department of Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said on Tuesday.
Cusi told senators during a briefing of the Senate Committee on Energy that maintenance work on the power plants was put on hold for the May elections, which caused maintenance checks to pile up.
“It’s a tough task really, determining the real cause. We are still processing the report,” Cusi said.
“Every month, may maintenance ang planta so nagsabay-sabay ang maintenance because the plants cannot stretch anymore their operating schedule… nagpatong-patong kaya nagkaroon ng malaking shortage [Power plants should be maintained every month. There was shortage because the plants can no longer stretch their operating schedules],” he explained.
“DOE doesn’t like to postpone any maintenance and we would like to follow strictly the schedule and this is what we’d like to see moving forward,” he added.
In his presentation before the committee, DOE Undersecretary William Fuentebella said that from July 26 to Aug. 8, the energy situation was normal only on Aug. 2, 7 and 8. The Luzon grid was on red alert on July 29 and 30.
To address the power outages, Cusi said the DOE has entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with the Integrated Electrical Engineers of the Philippines (IEEP) for a joint technical audit of the generation, transmission and distribution infrastructure of the country.
Cusi said three teams will audit all 14 power plants in Luzon.
Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian, Senate Committee on Energy chairman, said there should be a “more substantial arrangement” with independent auditors.
“I urge you, and I suggest that you establish a relationship with strong industry auditors so we can have full knowledge and full review of what happened,” Gatchalian said.
An additional power capacity of 10,191 megawatts between 2016 and 2030 is needed, Cusi said.
He, however noted that for the short term, particularly in Luzon, there will be an additional capacity of 632 megawatts (MW) with the addition of the 100MW Avion natural gas power plant, 450 MW San Gabriel natural gas power plant, and the 82 MW Anda coal power plant ready for commercial operations.
Cusi also said they are planning to streamline the process in issuing permits to power plants to enable the power sector to put in more power plants.
At present, there are 122 signatures needed before a permit is issued to put up a power plant.
The DOE chief also assured the public that there is no looming power crisis. He said they are working on the betterment of power supply so that the red alert will never occur again.
“I dont think so and we have to prevent it,” Cusi said when asked by Sen. Leila De Lima if there is a looming power crisis. PNA/Madel Namit with a report from Philstar.com/Rosette Adel
