The Department of Energy (DOE) on Monday said that the Philippines has adequate power supply so far as the country has yet to breach its peak demand despite the onset of summer and the ongoing El Niño phenomenon.
Luzon still has 2,000 megawatts to spare, while Visayas and Mindanao is still 200-megawatts short of its estimated peak demand, Energy Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan told state television PTV.
“Wala pa po tayong kakulangan sa supply ng kuryente. Yung ating demand ay hindi pa umaakyat sa ating projected na peak demand sa taon na ito,” he said.
“Wala pa po tayong pangamba na magkukulang either yung ating suplay ng kuryente o yung ating tinatawag na reserve,” he said.
(We don’t have a power supply shortage. The demand hasn’t climbed yet to our projected peak demand this year. We are not worried that our power supply or our reserves will fall short.)
This was a reversal of the DOE’s earlier statement that the Luzon grid may face “Yellow Alert” in April and May as falling water levels in dams reduce power supplies from hydroelectric plants.
Meralco also said that it had planned for the projected higher power consumption in the summer or dry season, and that it was confident that there would be no widespread brownouts in the coming months.
While power supply is dwindling in Visayas, this is augmented by supply coursed through the Mindanao-Visayas interconnection project, Marasigan said, noting that up to 450 megawatts can be sent to Visayas from Mindanao.
“Madalas nasasagad natin yung transfer capacity from Mindanao to Visayas,” he said.
Despite the stable power supply, the DOE official still advised the public to be more judicious in the use of electricity, noting that demand for power may peak either in May or June.
