Tulfo alarmed at PH power supply woes, pushes for Senate investigation

Senator Idol Raffy Tulfo filed a Senate Resolution (SR) seeking to investigate the alarming power supply issue hounding the nation.

Tulfo, Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Energy, filed SR No. 1008 following the declaration of red and yellow alerts in the Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao grids.

A Red Alert is issued when the power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid's regulating requirement, while a Yellow Alert is issued when the operating margin is insufficient to meet the transmission grid's contingency requirement.

"It is important to determine the cause of the insufficiency of power supply to meet consumer demand, including the cause of power plant outages and unscheduled shutdowns," he said.

As early as April 16, Tulfo already coordinated with the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines to ensure that the corporation, along with the Department of Energy (DOE), will strictly monitor the generation companies to avoid brownout.

Meanwhile, according to the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP), placing both Luzon and Visayas grids on red and yellow alerts has also caused market prices to increase from 5.55 pesos per kilowatt hour (kwh) to 13.39 pesos per kwh in Luzon, while the market price for Visayas went up from 5.73 pesos per kwh to 14.64 pesos per kwh.

"There is a need to ensure that the increases in the market prices should not be borne by the innocent consumers," he noted.

In filing the said resolution, Tulfo also underscores the need to ensure that proper measures and interventions are being undertaken and are to be undertaken by the relevant government agencies, generation companies, and other industry players to make sure that there is sufficient supply of power and to prevent nationwide rotational brownouts.

The hearing of the Senate Committee on Energy regarding said issue is scheduled on May 6.

Problema sa supply ng kuryente sa bansa, ikinaalarma ni Tulfo; imbestigasyon sa Senado nakakasa na

Naghain si Senator Idol Raffy Tulfo ng Senate Resolution (SR) na naglalayong imbestigahan ang lumalang isyu sa suplay ng kuryente sa bansa.

Si Tulfo, na Chairperson ng Senate Committee on Energy, ay naghain ng SR No. 1008 kasunod ng deklarasyon ng red at yellow alerts sa Luzon, Visayas, at Mindanao grids.

Ang isang Red Alert ay idinedeklara kapag ang power supply ay hindi sapat upang matugunan ang pangangailangan ng consumer at ang transmission grid, habang ang isang Yellow Alert ay idinedeklara kapag ang operating margin ay hindi sapat upang matugunan ang transmission grid ng contingency requirement.

"It is important to determine the cause of the insufficiency of power supply to meet consumer demand, including the cause of power plant outages and unscheduled shutdowns," saad niya.

Noong Abril 16, nakipag-ugnayan na si Tulfo sa National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) para matiyak na mahigpit na babantayan ng korporasyon, kasama ang Department of Energy (DOE), ang mga generation company para maiwasan ang brownout.

Samantala, ayon sa Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP), ang paglalagay ng parehong Luzon at Visayas grids sa red at yellow alerts ay nagdulot din ng pagtaas ng presyo sa merkado mula 5.55 pesos kada kilowatt hour (kwh) hanggang 13.39 pesos kada kwh sa Luzon, habang ang presyo sa pamilihan para sa Visayas ay tumaas mula 5.73 piso kada kwh hanggang 14.64 piso kada kwh.

"There is a need to ensure that the increases in the market prices should not be borne by the innocent consumers," ani Tulfo.

Sa paghahain ng nasabing resolusyon, binibigyang-diin ni Tulfo ang pangangailangan na tiyakin na ang mga wastong hakbang at interbensyon ay naisasagawa at dapat isagawa ng mga kinauukulang ahensya ng gobyerno, mga kumpanya ng henerasyon, upang matiyak na mayroong sapat na suplay ng kuryente at para maiwasan ang rotational brownout sa buong bansa.

Ang pagdinig ng Senate Committee on Energy hinggil sa nasabing isyu ay nakatakda sa Mayo 6.