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Power supply in the Visayas grid fell short yesterday by at least 200 megawatts due to downtime of plants undergoing 10-day preventive maintenance, said officials.
This means wider areas of Cebu will suffer rotation brownouts.
?The impact of the supply shortage will be felt starting Monday, at the start of the week. The shortage will be felt Visayas-wide as this will be equitably distributed among the major islands and cities,? said Belinda Canlas of the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines.
Consumers can help ease the blow by conserving energy and reducing demand.
As of yesterday, the power shortage for the Visayan Electric Company (Veco), which services Metro Cebu and outlying areas, is 23.5 MW to 32. 9MW.
Veco spokesperson Ethel Natera repeated an appeal for the public to go easy on using appliances and lights. The full impact is expected to be felt on Monday, when people report to work, and stores and factories start full operations, increasing demand.
The 200 MW shortfall is affecting the Cebu-Negros-Panay (CNP) grid. Cebu needs at least 800 MW daily to supply its power needs.
Canlas said the 120- MW Mahanagdong geothermal plant in Leyte was shut down on Saturday for preventive maintenance.
?The shutdown will run for 10 days. As a result, Visayas grid power supply will decrease,? she said.
Delivery of 50 MW excess power from Luzon has not resumed since it was cut off last week, also because of a power shortage in Luzon.
Canlas said that some of the small private power plants in Cebu are also undergoing maintenance repair. She didn't identify which plants, saying it is up to their management to announce service interruptions.
Rotation brownouts of one hour or longer were experienced again last week.
Last Wednesday, the Visayas grid had a 70 MW shortage due to maintenance work on big plants in Cebu.
?We have been dependent on imported power from Luzon for the past few months. However, Luzon is having reserve problems so it is unable to extend power supply to the Visayas,? said Canlas.
The thin power reserves of Cebu has been an acute problem since the last quarter of 2009, when the shortage reached about 200 MW.
Although new coal-fired plants are being built, with an 86-MW unit in Toledo City available by Feb. 15 through the Cebu Energy Development Corp., overall supply in Cebu is expected to remain vulnerable for the next several months.
Carlos Co, power committee chairman, of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI), said private companies that volunteer to switch on their own generators as part of Veco's load shedding program are expected to ease the situation.
More than 10 establishments which include San Miguel Corp., AD Gothong, and SM City, contribute at least 20 MW to the grid when they self-generate.
Cebu Business Club president Gordon Allan ?Dondi? Joseph said Cebuanos should prepare for the worst.
He said the public was given too short notice about the severe drop in power supply.
?(Let us) implement the load deloading program. But I don't think there is adequate time. The public will just have to bite the bullet,? Joseph told Cebu Daily News.
Veco's suggestion to consumers: Switch off TV sets, radios and lights when not in use. Use Compact Fluorescent Lamps (CFL), which last longer than conventional bulbs.
A 15-watt CFL provides the same illumination as that of a 75-watt ordinary bulb.
Ideally, Cebu is supposed to have a power reserve of 23.4 percent of its actual demand of 800 MW.
Veco needs a maximum of 350 MW during peak hours from 10 am. to 12 noon and 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Then 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
?We may implement rotation brownouts in more areas starting Monday,? said Natera. Reporters DORIS BONGCAC AND Aileen Garcia-Yap
