Gatchalian calls on DOE for energy contingency plans amid warmer weather conditions

Senator Win Gatchalian called on the Department of Energy (DOE) to come up with contingency plans to ensure steady supply of electricity amid warmer weather conditions intensified by the impact of the El Niño phenomenon.

The country is expected to experience the peak of the El Niño phenomenon in the summer months, according to the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.

The vice-chair of the Senate Committee on Energy, Gatchalian noted that in 2022, about 9% of the country's power capacity was generated from hydroelectric power plants.

"El Niño is going to be a big concern for our country not just in terms of food security but also energy security. A big chunk of our hydro areas will be experiencing drought, and their output will be curtailed which will have an impact on some parts of the country, so we need to have a contingency plan for that especially during the hot months," he said at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum.

To cushion the impact of drier weather conditions, the energy department needs to ensure that all the necessary repairs and preventive maintenance will be undertaken before the peak of the summer months to prevent unforeseen outages, according to Gatchalian.

"All the preventive maintenance should be done now so that when the summer months come, the plants will be running at full capacity and the DOE needs to monitor this very carefully," he said.

The legislator emphasized that power plants are particularly vulnerable to breakdowns during summer months amid high demand and the energy department needs to ensure that no unscheduled outage takes place to ensure a steady supply of electricity.

The damage to agriculture due to the impact of El Niño has already reached over P1 billion, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC) said recently.

Gatchalian nanawagan sa DOE para sa energy contingency plan sa gitna ng mas mainit na panahon

Nanawagan si Senador Win Gatchalian sa Department of Energy (DOE) na gumawa ng mga contingency plan ngayong painit nang painit ang panahon para matiyak ang tuluy-tuloy na suplay ng kuryente sa gitna ng El Niño phenomenon.

Inaasahang mararanasan ng bansa ang rurok ng El Niño ngayong summer season, ayon sa Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration.

Sinabi ng vice-chairperson ng Senate Committee on Energy na noong 2022, humigit-kumulang 9% ng power capacity ng bansa ay mula sa hydroelectric power plants.

"Ang epekto ng El Niño ay magiging isang malaking problema hindi lamang sa usapin ng seguridad sa pagkain, kundi pati na rin sa seguridad sa enerhiya. Malaking bahagi ng ating hydro areas ang makakaranas ng tagtuyot, at mababawasan ang kanilang output na magkakaroon ng epekto sa ilang bahagi ng bansa, kaya kailangan ng contingency plan lalo na't parating na ang mas mainit pang mga buwan," ani Gatchalian.

Upang mapawi ang epekto ng mas tuyong kondisyon ng panahon, kailangang tiyakin ng DOE na ang lahat ng kinakailangang pagkukumpuni at preventive maintenance ay maisagawa na upang maiwasan ang brownout, ayon sa senador.

"Ang lahat ng preventive maintenance ay dapat ginagawa na ngayon upang pagdating ng summer, lahat ng mga planta ay tumatakbo ng buong kapasidad ng mga ito at kailangang mamonitor ito nang mabuti," sabi niya.

Binigyang-diin ng mambabatas na ang mga planta ng kuryente ay madaling bumigay pagdating ng tag-init dahil sa mas mataas na demand.

Umabot na sa mahigit P1 bilyon ang pinsala sa agrikultura dahil sa epekto ng El Niño, ayon sa National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council (NDRRMC).