THE Mindanao Power Monitoring Committee (MPMC) reported that Mindanawons can expect around 580 megawatts (MW) of additional power by 2015.
According to their accomplishment report for 2013, the bulk of the power supply will be coming from the Therma South Inc.’s 300 MW Coal-fired Energy Project in Barangay Binugao, Toril, Davao City and Barangay Inawayan, Sta. Cruz, Davao del Sur. The plant is expected to begin commercial operations within the first semester of 2015.
By the third quarter of 2015, the first unit of the Sarangani Energy Corporation’s 200 MW Southern Mindanao Coal-fired Power Station, located in Maasim, Sarangani, will go online supplying 100 MW to the grid. Also, in the same quarter, the Puyo Hydroelectric Power Project of the First Gen Mindanao Hydropower Corp. in Jabonga, Agusan del Norte is expected to generate 30MW.
Lastly, the first unit of the 300MW SMC Davao Power Plant Project of the San Miguel Consolidated Power Corporation in Malita, Davao del Sur will be supplying 150MW to the grid by the end of 2015.
“The completion of committed power projects by 2015 would bring availability of excess supply including contingency reserves in Mindanao for the first time since 2009,” the MPMC said in their report.
The MPMC also reported that by 2016 an expected power supply of 720MW will go online and another 550.6 MW by 2017.
“Now it can be said, that while Luzon braces for a precarious power situation next year…Mindanao, on the other hand, is starting to generate enough,” said Luwalhati Antonino, chair of the Mindanao Development Authority (Minda), during the Mindanao Power Stakeholders Dialogue on Friday at the Marco Polo Hotel Davao.
However, Romeo Montenegro, Mindanao Development Authority (Minda) director of investment promotions and public affairs, said during the presentation of the MPMC updates that though Mindanao can expect a healthy power supply, there will still be areas that will experience rotational brownouts.
He clarified that this is not caused by the lack of power supply in the grid but rather it was caused by operational, financial, or contracting issues of some electric cooperatives or distributors.
“Electric cooperatives that have some contracting issues or deficiencies will still go through brownout,” Montenegro said.
Published in the Sun.Star Davao newspaper on September 08, 2014.
