Visayas: The drop in the expected peak demand in the Visayas grid on Thursday has resulted in the lifting of the red alert status in the grid, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) announced. The red alert status, which was initially issued for the period between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m., was lifted at 12:45 p.m.

According to Philippines News Agency, the peak demand is now expected to reach 2,354 megawatts (MW), down from the earlier forecast of 2,568 MW. The available capacity also decreased slightly to 2,532 MW from the previous 2,561 MW. Despite the lifting of the red alert, the Visayas grid remains under a yellow alert until 10:00 p.m.

NGCP issues a red alert status when the power supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid's regulating requirement. A yellow alert status is declared when the operating margin is inadequate to meet the transmission grid's contingency requirement. The Visayas grid has been experiencing fluctuating alert statuses since mid-May, largely due to increased demand coinciding with the maintenance schedules of several power plants, particularly hydropower facilities.

The situation is further compounded by several power plants that are currently on forced outage. These include the generating units 1 and 2 of Therma Visayas Inc. (TVI) and the Palm Concepcion Power Corporation (PCPC). NGCP reported that ten power plants are unavailable this month, while others have been on forced outage since various dates ranging from March to as far back as 2021.

Additionally, 14 power plants are operating at derated capacities, contributing to a total unavailable capacity of 959.3 MW in the grid. This ongoing issue highlights the challenges of managing power supply in the region amidst maintenance schedules and unexpected outages.