Business Mirror
Published on Thursday, 24 January 2013 19:20 Written by Lenie Lectura / Reporter
The Philippine Independent Power Producers Association (Pippa) urged the government to assure sufficient supply of reliable and competitively-priced power in anticipation of increase investments in the country.
“Given the latest developments, it is already necessary to put up the necessary infrastructures that will secure the continuous supply of electricity,” said Pippa President Ernesto Pantangco, who added that the government should take advantage of the momentum signaled by the latest gross domestic product (GDP) figures and the historic highs in the Philippine Stock Exchange.
Pantangco said that building reliable, adequate and competitively-priced power supply provided by baseload power plants are the key to meeting the country’s energy supply needs while keeping prices stable especially for power-intensive industries.
“An unreliable power system charging high energy costs dissuades investments and investors both in the short and long term. Baseload power plants that run on coal or natural gas produce energy at a constant rate, usually at a more competitive cost relative to other power facilities available to the system.”
According to the Department of Energy (DOE), the current electricity consumption rate in the Luzon grid means that three new 600 megawatt (MW) power plants have to be online every year from 2015 to 2017.
The DOE’s Philippine Energy Plan states that 11,000 MW in additional capacity is needed until 2030. This projection is based on a 4.79-percent annual growth in energy demand. Currently, the country only has 13,000 MW in dependable capacity.
The association of power generators is also pushing for the diversification of fuel sources to balance the overall energy mix.
Pantangco urged relevant sectors to look deeper into the scenarios and put into consideration the impact on the economy and the people should the increasing demand for power be unmet. source
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