• CHERYL G. CRUZ
The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said Feb. 29 that it may implement manual load dropping (MLD) in parts of Negros Island, including Bacolod City, to maintain the integrity of the Panay sub-grid.
The latest MLD advisory, issued at 6 p.m. Thursday, was due to the “unplanned shutdown of the Panay Energy Development Corporation (PEDC) Unit 2, with an 83-megawatt capacity, and the maintenance shutdown of the 135MW Palm Concepcion Power Plant (PCPC) until March 30.”
The electricity generated by the coal-fired PEDC and PCPC plants, based in Iloilo, supplies the needs of Western Visayas and neighboring areas, including Negros.
“The unavailability of PEDC2 and PCPC qualify as a significant threat to system security and following a credible N-1 event, justifies manual intervention by the System Operator NGCP under Philippine Grid Code Section 6.2.3.4,” the advisory explained. “Schedule may be cancelled if system condition improves, such as if actual demand falls below projections.”
The NGCP also said it monitored the emergency shutdown of PEDC Unit 2 at 4:08 a.m. Feb. 28, “due to issues internal to the power plant”.
PEDC Unit 3 (150MW) also went on unscheduled shutdown Feb. 27, and just reconnected back to the grid at 12:27 p.m., also on Tuesday, it added.
The NGCP and distribution utilities, like the Central Negros Electric Cooperative, Northern Negros Electric Cooperative, and the Negros Occidental Electric Cooperative, have been urging for a prudent use of electricity, with the demand expected to increase due to El Niño and the summer season. | CGC
