The Luzon grid remains on yellow alert on Friday for several hours of the day due to low power reserves, grid operator National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) said.
NGCP said in its advisory that it placed the Luzon grid on yellow alert status from 2PM to 4PM, 8PM to 10PM as available capacity was at 14,535 megawatts compared to peak demand of 13,751MW.
“Four plants have been on forced outage since 2023, four between January and March 2024, and 14 since April 2024; while two others are running on derated capacity, for a total of 1,512.7MW unavailable to the grid,” NGCP said.
A yellow alert is issued when the operating margin is insufficient to meet the transmission grid’s contingency requirement.
NGCP also placed the Visayas grid status on yellow alert from 1PM to 4PM and 6PM to 7PM.
Available capacity in the Luzon grid was at 2,791MW versus peak demand of 2,530MW.
NGCP said one plant has been on forced outage since 2022, two since 2023, two between January and March 2024, and 14 since April 2024; while eight others are running on derated capacities, for a total of 604.1MW unavailable to the grid.
The Department of Energy has been encouraging the private sector not only to participate in the Interruptible Load Program of the distribution utilities, but also to adopt similar energy conservation measures to help reduce demand, especially during the peak hours.
At the same time, the public is also requested to continue practicing energy conservation and efficiency measures during peak hours.
These measures include turning off lights and unplugging appliances when not in use, closing blinds and curtains, and avoiding, whenever possible, the use of high-energy consuming devices, which can significantly contribute to alleviating the strain on the grid.