Lawmakers on Monday called for an investigation into the series of power transmission disturbances that caused power outages that inconvenienced the public and resulted in lost income for businesses.
On May 8, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) placed the Luzon Grid under red and yellow alerts after a disruption resulted in rotational blackouts due to the tripping of the Bolo-Masinloc 230 kilovolt (kV) Line 2.
The alerts also affected the transfer of generated supply from the Luzon Grid to the Visayas Grid, resulting in the Visayas Grid also being placed under yellow alert.
A day later, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) reported power supply cuts due to a “temporary system imbalance.”
“These successive transmission system disturbances caused inconvenience to communities and losses to businesses. The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines as the operator of the transmission system in the country should be held to account for the root cause of these disturbances,” said Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, vice chair of the Senate Committee on energy.
Before the May incidents, NGCP also reported a system disturbance in the Visayas grid on April 27, causing a loss of 322.3 megawatts (MW) and power interruptions that persisted until April 30 in the islands of Panay, Guimaras, and Negros, affecting over 1.5 million households, Gatchalian said.
“NGCP is mandated under Section 3 of Republic Act No.9511 to operate and maintain the transmission system, grid, and related facilities at all times in accordance with industry standards,” he said.
Senator Risa Hontiveros maintained her position that transmission lines, which are a key backbone of the entire power industry, should not have been privatized in the first place.
Hontiveros was reacting to proposals to buy back China’s shares in the NGCP due to security reasons.
Hontiveros said there are two primary reasons for her position—one is national security; the other is government financial losses, including tax revenue.
“As a result, I wholeheartedly support Senator JV [Ejercito]’s proposal to reclaim control of the national grid, particularly from Chinese control,” she said.
Based on expert testimony submitted during earlier Senate investigations, she said China acquired the upper hand in regulating the system functioning of the grid because it owns 40 percent of the consortium.
Senator Francis Escudero, on the other hand, said he doesn’t support the buyback plan at the moment because he has not yet read the fine print.
He also raised concerns over the re-nationalization of formerly-owned and sold state assets, noting that it is a policy that the national government should be very careful as it might send a wrong signal to existing and potential investors.
The senator also questioned if the country has enough money, given its huge debt.
“Are the owners selling or will this be a forced sale?” he said.
He also wanted to know if there was a formal finding from regulators that it was NGCP’s fault other than mere finger-pointing.
Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva and Senator Grace Poe said they are open to review the contract.
Villanueva said the calls to review the NCGP’s franchise make a lot of sense.
With the increasing occurrence of brownouts in the Philippines, he noted the government should be more proactive in ensuring that there would be enough power supply in the country, especially with the imminent occurrence of El Niño.
Due to this, the Senate leader said he filed Senate Resolution No. 556 calling on the Department of Energy and other concerned agencies to present programs, activities, and initiatives to ensure a continuous supply of energy in the country throughout the year.
On the other hand, Poe said the Senate committee on public services which she chaired, is open to the review of the congressional franchise of NGCP as it concerns a critical need of Filipinos.
The recurring power outages being experienced by millions of households amid the scorching months should not be the norm.
“We must also exercise vigilance when it comes to our power lines, to ensure that electricity running from Luzon to Mindanao remains under the control of Filipinos amid security concerns raised by senators,” she said.
She said her committee will thoroughly scrutinize the performance of the NGCP and see if it has remained faithful to its signed franchise or if violations have been committed.
At the House of Representatives, Deputy Minority Leader France Castro of ACT Teachers party-list, House Assistant Minority Leader Arlene Brosas of Gabriela party-list and Kabataan party-list representative Raoul Manuel also called for a congressional probe.
“While the private companies earn billions of profit, the Filipino people are suffering from high cost of electricity rates, and rotational and unplanned power outages. If not ultimately repealed, it is high time for Congress to, at the very least, review and introduce amendments to EPIRA (Electric Power Industry Reform Act),” the Makabayan lawmakers said in their resolution. With Maricel V. Cruz