NGCP expects to fully energize Mindanao-Visayas link by end-2023

By Alena Mae S. Flores – October 12, 2023, 8:25 pm
from manilastandard.net

Transmission operator National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) expects to fully energize  the Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project (MVIP) and allow the flow of 450 megawatts of power capacity by the end of 2023.

NGCP spokesperson Cynthia Perez-Alabanza said the MVIP was already partially energized as early as April 2023, paving the way for the flow of power from Mindanao to the Visayas.

“MVIP is already partially energized as early as April 2023 so the power flow from Mindanao to Visayas started in April 2023 and in June, we finished another component, Kauswagan-Lala 230 kV line. In September, we finished Dumanjug 230 kV line, so right now this is the current transfer capacity,” Alabanza said.

She said some works for certain components needed to be done to energize the facility and NGCP was looking to accomplish it before the end of the year.

“The last time we checked, we were at 50 percent [completion rate] of the 450 MW but I’ll double check,” Alabanza said.

Alabanza said the project was started in 2017 and took six years to complete despite the challenges of the COVID pandemic such as supply chain delays.

“That’s not so bad. It’s still below the global average. Is it delayed? Yes, because I think we wanted to do it faster,” she said.

NGCP listed the MVIP and Stage 3 of the Cebu-Negros-Panay Interconnection Project (CNP) among its priorities in response of the call of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. during his State-of-the-Nation address.

NGCP sought support from local government units to extend essential support by promptly granting relevant permits and providing necessary assistance in addressing right-of-way issues that have hindered the smooth implementation of these projects.

“We reiterate our call for what the President termed as a ‘cohesive, centralized, and systematic approach’ to planning, including that for energy for stability, resiliency, and independence. We echo the President’s observation that while national goals are all within reach, ‘this will require not just the work of a single person or a single branch of government nor even the whole government acting alone, but the collective efforts achieved only by all Filipinos working together,’” NGCP said.

NGCP vowed to concentrate all available resources toward the completion of ongoing transmission projects while expediting others in the pipeline.

NGCP said it would also prioritize improving disaster resilience of the grid infrastructure.

The company said it would intensify its ongoing and continuous upgrade of equipment and manpower, especially those that will prevent disruptions, or provide expedient repair in case of natural disasters.