NGCP shares plans at Electricity Summit
Power grid operator NGCP gave a glimpse of its long-term transmission plans during the Philippine Electricity Summit conducted last December 11 at the Crowne Plaza, Pasig City.
Among those discussed were NGCP’s plans of interconnecting major islands and reinforcing the Visayas transmission grid. The major islands intended for interconnection are Visayas and Mindanao, and Luzon and Mindoro. NGCP already filed for provisional authority with the Energy Regulatory Commission to conduct a feasibility study for the interconnection project.
Mr. Bambang Hermawanto, Chairman, ASEAN Power Grid Consultative Committee (APGCC) also presented the milestones of the planned power transmission interconnection of ASEAN member countries. He showed the possible route for Philippines’ interconnection, which is through Sabah, Malaysia.
“The ASEAN Power Grid is a long-term project of the member countries, and it may take several more years to be fully realized. NGCP and the Philippines is aligning with the ASEAN vision by developing first our very own transmission grid. We need to have a strong and reliable power transmission network within our country before we can interconnect with other nations,” stated NGCP.
Other topics discussed in the summit were the Global Energy Outlook by Mr. Heymi Bahar of International Energy Agency, Role of Gas in Power Generation for ASEAN Markets by Ms. Clairin Loh of Shell, Best Practices in the co-optimization of energy and reserve markets by Ms. Cherie Chen of Energy Market Company, and Market Development: Towards an Independent Philippine Electricity Market Operations by Mr. Alasdair Macdonald, an independent consultant of PEMC.
“It is high time that industry players start the conversations going and work towards cleaner and more sustainable energy sources, and towards a successful and competitive energy industry that is at par with, if not better than ASEAN counterparts,” said Henry Sy, Jr., NGCP President and CEO.
The 2015 Philippine Electricity Summit, with the theme “Powering Cross-Border Synergies”, is an event jointly organized by PEMC and NGCP.
NGCP is a privately owned corporation in charge of operating, maintaining, and developing the country’s power grid. It transmits high-voltage electricity through “power superhighways” that include the interconnected system of transmission lines, towers, substations, and related assets. The consortium, which holds the 25-year concession contract to operate the country’s power transmission network, is comprised of Monte Oro Grid Resources Corp. led by Henry Sy, Jr., Calaca High Power Corporation led by Robert Coyiuto, Jr., and the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) as technical partner.
