ERC issues 24 show-cause orders vs power generators over power supply interruptions

MANILA — The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) has issued 24 show-cause orders against power generators for exceeding allowable outage limits.

In a statement, the ERC said it ordered 13 generation companies to explain why they did not comply with reliability performance standards. 

The ERC noted that in June, it already issued notices of non-compliance with orders to comply and explain against power generation companies over outages involving 48 generating units.

The agency then compared the submitted documents against the applicable reliability standards and allowable outage limits.

The ERC said this is part of its assessment of power plant outages amid concerns over recurring supply interruptions, particularly in the Visayas and Mindanao.

The agency said penalties may be imposed for violations of the prescribed reliability performance standards.

In October, the ERC said it would investigate generation companies over the power disruptions in Visayas and Mindanao. The Visayas grid has been on Red and Yellow Alerts since May.

In September, the ERC ordered the retroactive implementation of the secondary price cap (SPC) for August electricity trading in the Visayas and Mindanao spot markets and thereafter. 

An SPC is triggered when the rolling average on the entire Philippine grid breaches a set threshold. Once activated, the SPC will be computed and applied per region, using each grid’s rolling average price.

Spot market prices in the Visayas and Mindanao jumped to record levels due to the shutdown of many power plants in the regions.