Gencos responsible for disruptive power outages must be held accountabl--Gatchalian

Senator Win Gatchalian said power-generating companies that are unable to provide a stable and steady supply of electricity should be held accountable for outages that result in economic losses.

Gatchalian made this emphasis following a power interruption in Negros and Panay sub-grid due to an unplanned outage of Panay Energy Development Corp. (PEDC) Unit 3 last January 17.

Specifically, Gatchalian called on the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) to audit generation companies that consistently breach the reliability index and, if warranted, impose sanctions against them.

"Generation companies that consistently fail to provide their committed power supply should be held accountable. They should not be allowed to get off the hook easily," he said. The lawmaker explained that holding generation companies accountable for power outages is explicitly provided for under ERC Resolution No. 10, series of 2020, which enforces the maximum number of days for the annual unplanned outages in generating assets.

It can be recalled that the blackout that struck Western Visayas for several days early this year was attributed in part to the unplanned outage of PEDC Units 1 and 2, as well as the Palm Concepcion Power Corp. (PCPC) Unit 1.

Gatchalian had earlier called for stiffer penalties against industry players found guilty of mismanaging power-related issues that result in economic losses, emphasizing that any penalty should be commensurate with the economic loss incurred in affected areas.

He noted that in the case of the widespread power outage experienced in Western Visayas for several days, economic losses incurred by both Iloilo province and Iloilo City have reportedly reached P5.7 billion.

"Anumang kapabayaan na nagdudulot ng pinsala sa araw-araw na pamumuhay ng ating mga kababayan at takbo ng ekonomiya ay dapat may karampatang kaparusahan para hindi na paulit-ulit ang ganitong mga insidente," he said.

Under the reliability index implemented since 2020, for power facilities equipped with pulverized coal technology, their allowable "unavailability" or outages shall be equivalent to 44.7 days - comprising 27.9 days of planned outages and 16.8 days of forced or unplanned outages. For coal plants running on circulating fluidized bed (CFB) technology, allowable outages shall be for aggregate 32.3 days with 15.4 days of planned outages and 16.9 days of unplanned outages.

Generation companies na responsable sa brownout dapat managot --Gatchalian

Sinabi ni Senador Win Gatchalian na ang mga power-generating company na hindi makapagbigay ng sapat at tuloy-tuloy na suplay ng kuryente ay dapat managot sa mga outage na nagreresulta sa pagkalugi sa ekonomiya.

Binigyang-diin ito ni Gatchalian kasunod ng isang power interruption sa sub-grid ng Negros at Panay dahil sa biglaang pagbagsak ng Panay Energy Development Corp. (PEDC) Unit 3 noong Enero 17.

Nanawagan si Gatchalian sa Department of Energy (DOE) at Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) na i-audit ang generation companies na patuloy na hindi nakakasunod sa reliability index at, kung kinakailangan, magpataw ng mga parusa laban sa kanila.

"Ang generation companies na patuloy na bigong maisakatuparan ang naipangakong suplay ng kuryente ay dapat managot. "Huwag nating silang hayaang makalusot," aniya. Ipinaalala ni Gatchalian na ang pagpapanagot sa mga generation company dahil sa bigong pagpapatupad ng kanilang mandato ay nakasaad sa ERC Resolution No. 10, series of 2020.

Matatandaan na ang blackout na tumama sa Western Visayas sa loob ng ilang araw sa unang bahagi ng buwang ito ay dahil sa unplanned outage ng PEDC Units 1 at 2, gayundin ng Palm Concepcion Power Corp. (PCPC) Unit 1.

Nauna nang nanawagan si Gatchalian para sa mas mahigpit na parusa laban sa mga manlalaro ng industriya na napatunayang nagkasala ng kapabayaan o mismanagement ng mga bagay na may kaugnayan sa enerhiya. Ang anumang parusang ipapataw, aniya, ay dapat na katumbas ng lugi sa ekonomiya sa mga apektadong lugar.

Sa kaso ng malawakang brownout sa Western Visayas, sinasabing umabot na sa P5.7 bilyon ang lugi ng lalawigan ng Iloilo at Iloilo City.

"Anumang kapabayaan na nagdudulot ng pinsala sa araw-araw na pamumuhay ng ating mga kababayan at takbo ng ekonomiya ay dapat may karampatang kaparusahan para hindi na paulit-ulit ang mga ganitong insidente," aniya.