Napocor generates 1.28% more electricity in 1st qtr

State-owned National Power Corp. (Napocor) has reported that its gross energy generation went up by 1.28 percent to 9,444.16 gigawatt-hours (GWh) during the first quarter of 2004, from 9,324.93 GWh in the same period last year.

In a report, the state-owned power firm’s Sales and Services Group said that Napocor’s Independent Power Producers (IPPs) accounted for 64.50 percent, or 6,091.07 GWh, of the total generation from January to March this year.

Napocor-owned and -operated power plants, on the other hand, generated the other 35.50 percent or 3,353.09 GWh. In terms of generation mix, coal-fired plants accounted for the biggest share at 27.92 percent or 2,637.26 GWh.

This, however is considerably lower than the year-ago share of 32.05 percent, or 2,989.06 GWh. Geothermal plants came in second at 24.39 percent or 2,303.57 GWh. As in the case of coal, the share of geothermal plants dropped from the comparative year-ago figure of 27.39 percent or 2,553.76 GWh.

The most dramatic growth in terms of generation-mix share was posted by the hydroelectric power plants, which share rose from 14.90 percent to 19.65 percent year-on-year. Volume-wise, Napocor’s hydro plants produced 1,855.81 GWh during the three-month period, up from the 2003 figure of 1,389.67 GWh.

The share of oil-based plants in the generation mix stood at 15.67 percent or 1,479.95 GWh, up from 12.57 percent or 1,172.54 GWh last year.

Meanwhile, natural gas plants contributed 12.36 percent or 1,167.57 GWh, down slightly from the year-ago level of 13.08 percent or 1,219.90 GWh.

The generation mix refers to the proportion of the different fuel types that Napocor uses to run its power plants. On a per-region basis, Luzon accounted for the biggest share of the first-quarter generation at 62.96 percent or 5,946.48 GWh, slightly lower than last year’s output of 63.71 percent or 5,940.85 GWh.

The Visayas and Mindanao grids contributed 19.23 percent (1,816.25 GWh) and 17.80 percent (1,681.43 GWh), respectively, during the first three months of 2004.

Meanwhile, Napocor’s Leyte Geothermal Power Plant (LGPP) was recently conferred the much-coveted ISO (International Standards Organization) 9001:2000 certification for Quality Management System.

The ISO certification was given to LGPP by the New York-based Bureau Veritas Quality International N.A., Inc. for Napocor’s excellent operation and maintenance of a geothermal power plant. LGPP was built in 1983 and is located in Bgy. Lim-ao, Kananga, Leyte.

The power plant is capable of producing 112.5 megawatts, consisting of three units with a rated capacity of 37.5 MW. The LGPP in 1997 became the first-ever power plant in the Philippines to be ISO-certified for its effective Quality Management System.