No power shortage for the rest of the year, Umali says

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MANILA — Oriental Mindoro Rep. Reynaldo Umali, chairman of the House Committee on Energy, on Saturday said that barring unforeseen events, there will be no more power shortage in Luzon until the end of the year.

Umali, who is also the co-chairman of the Joint Congressional Power Commission (JCPC), said that the Luzon had already surpassed the expected critical periods for 2015.

He said that the most critical were during the Malapaya shutdown, which covered the period March to April and mid-May.

Since the rainy season had begun, hydropower plants were expected to return to their original capacities and thus increase power supply.

According to Umali the predicted power shortage did not happened as Luzon grid maintained a steady supply of electricity contrary to expectation of the Energy department.

Earlier, the panel has tried to give President Aquino special powers–through a joint resolution–to address the projected 782 megawatts power shortage in Luzon from March to July 2015.

But the congressional bicameral committee failed to break the stalemate until Congress went on recess in March.

Moreover, Umali also said that the Luzon grid has 2,000 megawatts (MW)of power reserves to use anytime when a critical period occurs.

Based on established protocols, ILP is implemented during a red alert status (minimal power reserve) upon the notice of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) and the power utilities informing ILP participants to deload from the grid.

The ILP is a voluntary program whereby businesses such as malls and factories that have their own generators can be disconnected from the power grid in times of short supply, and can sell any excess power they generate to distributors.