Visayas grid on yellow alert anew

MANILA, Philippines — The Visayas grid was again placed on yellow alert yesterday due to high electricity demand and the shutdown of several major coal-powered plants.

The alert status was hoisted over the region from 5 to 8 p.m., according to the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines.

The NGCP said the region’s power demand reached 2,492 megawatts while the available capacity was only 2,658 MW.

Power grids in Luzon and Mindanao were in normal condition as of 3 p.m.

A yellow alert is issued when power supply is about to become insufficient. If conditions worsen, this may escalate to a red alert, which is raised when supply can no longer meet consumers’ demand.

This week, power consumers in Luzon and the Visayas experienced rotational blackouts lasting two to three hours for three consecutive days after yellow and red alerts were raised across the regions.

Barring any unexpected surge in demand or additional plant outages, the NGCP expects the power situation to remain stable this weekend.

The Department of Energy has urged the public to conserve electricity, particularly during peak demand hours, to help ease pressure on the grid.