The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) alerted consumers in Panay of possible manual load dropping to preserve the integrity of the Panay grid amid the reduced generation of Palm Concepcion Power Corporation (PCPC).
“It’s a heads-up that in the event there is deterioration in the generation or our system is threatened, we will be considering manual load dropping as a worst-case scenario. Currently, we are monitoring closely, we will be sending advisories if there are updates or developments,” Reagan Alcantara, lead specialist of the public relations of the NGCP, said Thursday, Feb. 8.
In an advisory, NGCP said it received information on the reduction of power produced by the PCPC from 124 megawatts (MW) to 65 MW due to issues internal to the plant and the possibility that it may “cause PCPC to shut down entirely.”
PCPC is one of two big power generators in Panay; the other is the Panay Energy Development Corporation (PEDC), but only two of its three units are operating.
PEDC’s Unit 1, with a generating capacity of 83 MW, is still on maintenance shutdown from Feb.1 to Feb. 17. Its two other units can generate around 233 MW.
NGCP data showed the afternoon peak demand of Panay Island is 486 megawatts (MW) and 453 MW in the evening.Perla Lena/PNA
