The Department of Energy (DOE) assured that there will be no major problem in hydroelectric power for the rest of the year due to an offset in lower power demand.
This is amid the occurrence of El Niño and the projected reduction in the generation of hydroelectric power from 50% in July to 70% in December.
“Tiningnan natin ang demand at nakita naman natin na parang sa taong ito, hindi natin na-reach yung projected demand. Ibig sabihin, mababa ‘yung demand by about 300 to 500 megawatts,” DOE Undersecretary Rowena Guevara said in a public briefing on Friday, July 7.
“Dahil doon, hindi namin nakikita na magiging major problem for this year itong ating mga hydroelectric power,” she explained.
However, Guevara warned that a yellow alert may be raised in the third week of July and another three in August.
Despite the outlook, she assured that the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) have ancillary services on standby to prevent power interruptions.
“‘Pag nagkaroon tayo ng yellow alert, posible naman naming patakbuhin ang mas mahal na planta natin na mga diesel para hindi tayo magkaroon ng mga brownouts,” she said.
“Nakahanda naman ‘yan at nasa plano naman ‘yan ng NGCP–‘yung tinatawag na ancillary services.” –With reports from Ryan Lesigues and Christian Andrei Bautista-cf
