Short-term power prospects grim

Business World Online
Posted on April 03, 2012 11:26:25 PM
BY THE MINDANAO BUREAU


Second of two parts


DAVAO CITY -- Power sector leaders on the island remain pessimistic with regard to the grid’s short-term prospects. “Even if we comply with the latest circular from the Department of Energy (DoE), the effect will not be significant in terms of making up for the power shortage in South Cotabato and the entire Mindanao,” said Santiago C. Tudio, general manager of South Cotabato Electric Cooperative-1.


Mr. Tudio was referring to Circular 2012-03-0004, released last month, which directed distribution utilities to comply with Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001 to address the power supply situation.
But Clint Django C. Pacana, executive director of the Association of Mindanao Rural Electric Cooperatives, said the sanctions cited in the circular, which includes disconnection from the grid if the customer fails to comply with a load-to-maintain level, could be effective.
“Although disconnection is a drastic measure, the same would discipline utilities to observe responsibilities... We believe the best way is to automatically put a cap based on the contracted capacity in accordance to one’s share of the better supply,” he said.
In Zamboanga City, power availability expectations remain low. “We expect late April will be the worst,” said Jesus Y. Castro, acting general manager of the Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative, with the daily outage in Zamboanga City likely to be longer than six hours by that time.
As a stop-gap measure, Mr. Castro said the electric cooperative had already signed a contract to tap 18 MW from Therma Marine, Inc., a subsidiary of Aboitiz Power Corp., which operates two power barges. The entry of Therma Marine in Zamboanga has been opposed by the industrial group and business sector, who say they are wary of the charges to be passed on to consumers.
A long-term solution, said Mr. Castro, is to interconnect Mindanao to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) power grid. “This is [within the] 2009 ASEAN memorandum via 69-kilovolt submarine cables from Zamboanga City to Sabah, Malaysia thru the island-provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. Excess production in Malaysia (Sabah, Sarawak) and Indonesia (Kalimantan) can then be imported by the Philippines,” he said.
“Also, we could explore the viability of renewable energy sources, i.e. wave energy potential in Basilan Strait and Surigao Strait...,” he added.
Romeo M. Montenegro, spokesperson of the Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA), said the agency has been conducting consultations with stakeholders to generate a common understanding of the power issue and draw out collective measures.
With the DoE circular, MinDA expects industry players to comply with the scheduled load to ensure balance of supply. “The last thing electric cooperatives wanted to happen is being cut-off from the grid so there’s a great degree of certainty the circular would work,” he said.
Long-term solutions to the problem, everyone agrees, require new plants. The NGCP listed the following committed projects:


• Mindanao Energy Systems, Inc.’s 27.4-MW diesel plant in Tablon, Cagayan de Oro and the Culaman 8-MW mini-hydro in Jasaan, Misamis Oriental (2012);


• Energy Development Corp.’s 50-MW geothermal plant in Kidapawan, North Cotabato (2014);


• Conal Holdings’ 100-MW coal fired power plant in Maasim, Sarangani (2015); and


• Green Power Bukidnon Phils. Inc.’s 35-MW bio-mass power plant in Maramag, Bukidnon (2013).
In the pipeline are the following coal-fired power plants:


• the 300-MW plant of Aboitiz Power Corp. in Davao City (2014);


• 200-MW expansion of STEAG State Power Corp in Misamis Oriental (2014);


• a 200-MW Conal Holdings plant in Zamboanga City (no target date yet); and


• a 100-MW PNOC plant in Zamboanga Sibugay (no target date yet).
While the first set will ease the island’s power situation, it is the second set, with roughly 800 MW, that promises sufficiency in the supply of electricity.
Meanwhile, political and business leaders here want the government to immediately address the situation but are mixed on a proposal to provide President Benigno S. C. Aquino III with emergency powers.
Governor Arturo T. Uy of Compostela Valley, said it would be better to provide Mr. Aquino with the powers so he would have elbow room but younger brother Rey, mayor of Tagum City in Davao del Norte, disagreed.
A business sector leader, meanwhile, believes Congress should act post-haste. “Congress must act on it as soon as possible as this power crisis will have tremendous negative impact,” said Joji I. Bian, Mindanao representative to the Export Development Council.


Mindanao situation improving -- gov’t


THE POWER SITUATION has improved in more areas in Mindanao following the adoption of a “stop-gap” measure, the Energy department yesterday said.
It claimed that fewer outages were being experienced in Malaybalay, Dipolog, Dapitan, Valencia, Camiguin, Panabo, Digos, Tagum, Mati, Cotabato, Surigao, Butuan and Cabadbaran.
“This is a result of the issuance of a stop-gap measure last month, DC (Department Circular) 2012-03-0004...,” the Energy department said.
“This now results to less power outage for provinces in Mindanao and [a] current power supply deficit of 100-160 megawatts (MW) from 360 MW during the previous months,” it added.
The circular directed government power agencies and industry stakeholders to ensure the use of all available power.
In a related development, the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) said it had approved a supply contract between Zamboanga City Electric Cooperative, Inc. (Zamelco) and Aboitiz-led Therma Marine, Inc. for 18 megawatts (MW) of power from power barges 117 and 118.
Also yesterday, a Conal Holdings Corp. official said the 100-MW Iligan Diesel Power Plant could be connected to the Mindanao grid in a month’s time and cut the island’s roughly 200-megawatt daily shortage.
Edgardo S. Calabio, Conal marketing head, noted at the sidelines of a power forum in Davao that this was dependent on a Commission on Audit go-ahead for the firm’s bid to buy the plant. -- ENJD and JBE in Davao