An official of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines stressed the need for stability, not just in the power grid, but also in the supply, law, policy and regulation, for a more robust power industry.
NGCP vice chairman Henry Sy Jr. told the House Committee on Legislative Franchises that 97 percent of the power interruptions from 2016 to 2023 has been caused by problems in supply.
“We need stable, affordable baseload power. We need a comprehensive, aligned plan that considers the needs of all sectors,” Sy said in a statement. “We are willing to be part of the solution, but transmission should not be the solution to everyone’s problems.”
He also told the Committee that NGCP’s SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system is a secure stand-alone, isolated system not connected to any other network or internet, thus making it safe from remote hacking as he allayed concerns about China’s role in the operation of the country’s power grid.
“The State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) does not exercise control over the power grid nor over NGCP,” Sy said. “Domestic corporations Monte Oro Grid Resources Corporation and Calaca High Power Corporation each hold 30 percent, or a total of 60 percent of the outstanding capital stock of NGCP, whereas SGCC only holds a minority share of 40 percent,” Sy added.
He stressed that SGCC’s shareholding in NGCP is consistent with the Constitution, and debunked reports that the Chinese can shut down the country’s power grid. “It is NGCP alone, through its Filipino directors and personnel, and not the Chinese, which has control over the System Operations.”
“The Chinese do not have control over the Grid. There is no proverbial single red button that can instantly turn off the Grid. There are protocols that actually prevent this,” Sy added.
Meanwhile, the National Transmission Commission admitted delays in the right-of-way (ROW) cases, including projects which goes beyond their existence and those that are related to the operation of the National Power Corporation.
ROW is the legal entitlement granted to a person or an entity to pass through or use a portion of another person’s property for a specific purpose, the NGCP said in a press release Jan. 23.
Transco vice president Dinna Dizon, at the Legislative Franchise Committee hearing, explained that ROW cases were “left to for the government to settle” when the concession with NGCP was prepared or the bid was set out. She claimed that the cases handled by Transco pertain to assets that were already operating at the time when they transferred the concession to NGCP.
“The lengthy process is the validation if the piece of lot is part of the transmission project before, and the valuation that will go in the settlement of the lot,” Dizon added.
ROW issues have been affecting NGCP’s projects for 15 years now. Since taking over from Transco in 2009, the NGCP has struggled with ROW issues throughout the country for both new and those transmission projects acquired from the government which they are currently maintaining and operating. ||
