NGCP taps Alsons for ancillary services

MANILA, Philippines — The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) is procuring ancillary services (AS) from a diesel plant owned by Alsons Power Group to ensure the stability and reliability of the Mindanao power grid.

NGCP signed a five-year ancillary services procurement agreement (ASPA) with Western Mindanao Power Corp. (WMPC) which operates the 100-megawatt (MW) bunker-fired diesel power generating facility in Zamboanga City.

AS is necessary to support the transmission of capacity and energy from resources to loads while maintaining reliable operation of the transmission system in accordance with good utility practice and the grid code.

It is a system requirement to ensure grid system reliability, security and affordability of the supply.

Under  ASPA, WMPC will supply dispatchable reserve services to NGCP of up to 10 MW each  from its 10 units under a non-firm arrangement.

Dispatchable reserve refers to the generating capacity that are readily available for dispatch in order to replenish the contingency reserve service whenever a generating unit trips or a loss of a single transmission interconnection occurs.

The grid operator has certified the power plant as capable of AS, namely dispatchable reserve, reactive power support and black start support.

The black start support, on the other hand, will provide available capacity to energize the power  highway and synchronize to the rest of the grid.

SPAs will have a rate of P1.25 per kilowatt-hour (kwh) for the dispatchable reserve, P4 per kVAR per hour, and P104,000 per month for the black start service.

NGCP and WMPC are seeking the approval of the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) since the Mindanao grid has not yet met the required levels of AS.

“Ensuring the integrity of the system is essential to protect the interests of the public. The absence of system reliability and stability will certainly discourage investments and growth,” the joint application said.