House not rushing on Aquino emergency powers

Sunstar Network
By John Carlo Cahinhinan
Monday, October 20, 2014

THE chairperson of the House committee on energy said the chamber is not rushing up the passage of a resolution granting President Benigno Aquino III emergency powers to address the looming power shortage in 2015.

Oriental Mindoro Representative Reynaldo Umali, panel chairperson, said the committee is expected to approve the resolution before December.

Umali previously set a deadline of October 29 for the House of Representatives to pass the joint resolution to give the executive branch ample time to lease or purchase generator sets ahead of the intervals when power supply is expected to be tight starting March 2015.

"We hope to approve the joint resolution in the House before December 1. We will still approve (the President's request for emergency powers), but the provision regarding the rental of generator sets will no longer be there," Umali said.

Umali said they are now targeting more business establishments to sign up for the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) to increase the power reserves available next summer.

The program involves asking malls, factories and other business entities to use their own generator sets when the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) expects the supply of electricity to fall short of demand.

Umali said that as of Monday, the private sector has committed 847 megawatts (MW) under the ILP, with a de-rated or usable capacity of 593 MW.

Energy Undersecretary Raul Aguilos said ILP can solve the protracted power reserve shortfall in Luzon next year provided that 700 MW is committed by the private sector.

"As long as we can get the assurance from (private firms) and have them sign up (for ILP) already at this point in time, we'll no longer have a problem," he said.

According to the Department of Energy's (DOE) outlook for 2015, a reserve shortfall of 21 to 31 MW is expected to occur in the first two of April 2015.

This translates to one-hour rotating brownouts once a week based on the calculation of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP).

The DOE earlier warned that a five-day rotating brownout lasting for up to three hours may occur in Luzon next summer if Congress does not grant Aquino's request for emergency powers.

With the DOE and private stakeholders coming to a consensus about ILP as a preferred option to address the power crisis next year, Umali said the House can have more time to polish the provisions of the joint resolution for emergency powers.

"The only reason why we're trying to rush (the approval of the joint resolution) is we're trying to beat the deadline that will foreclose the options of leasing or purchasing additional generating capacity. If the (solution) will be purely ILP, then we can pass the joint resolution even on January or February," he said. (Sunnex) source