By Liezelle Soriano
MANILA — The Department of Energy (DOE) announced on Saturday (January 20, 2024) that Panay Island now maintains a stable electricity supply despite a generating plant going offline on January 17.
“Ang situation po ngayon, kagaya ng nabanggit ko kanina, stable po ang grid system natin. May ample supply tayo, walang kakulangan, at every 30 minutes po mino-monitor namin iyong sitwasyon. At mayroon pang mga oras na nag-eexport pa ang Panay papunta ng Negros,” shared Energy Assistant Secretary Mario Marasigan during a forum.
“Ang sitwasyon po is dahil may isang plantang naka-out at iyong planta rin po na iyon ay naka-out at that time na mangyari iyong January 2. So ngayon, para maiiwasan po natin na huwag magkaroon pa ng sitwasyon kagaya ng noong January 2. Kung mayroon pang isa o dalawang planta na magkakaroon pa ng problema, saka po sila mag-iisyu noong talagang advisory na magkakaroon ng manual o tripping.”
When asked about rotational brownouts in Panay, the DOE official clarified that there are no rotational brownouts except during the time the affected plant temporarily ceased operations.
Marasigan noted that before the January 17 incident, Panay had a stable energy generation operation, except on January 2, when the region experienced high power demand, resulting in a prolonged blackout.
Panay Island currently has more than 400 megawatts of power supply, while the demand is around 420 megawatts, according to Marasigan.
(el Amigo/MNM)
