QUEZON CITY, Philippines—The Department of Energy (DOE) on Thursday warned that the power supply in Luzon may fall under yellow and red alerts from June to August due to the shutdown of several baseload coal and gas power plants.
Reacting to the DOE’s statement, Greenpeace Campaigner Khevin Yu said:
“Recurring power shortages are a symptom of the bigger problem of the country’s outdated energy system. The country is heavily reliant on inflexible baseload fossil fuel plants. When these plants break down, the entire Luzon grid suffers and millions of Filipinos are left to suffer brownouts.
“Instead of resorting to band-aid solutions geared at augmenting these outdated plants, the DOE should facilitate the immediate revamp of the country’s energy system to phase out centralized fossil fuel systems and transition to smart, flexible renewable energy. Aside from addressing energy security, this urgent and managed phaseout of fossil fuel baseload plants will not only help the country transition to clean renewable energy and help address the climate crisis. It will also ensure Filipino energy users do not bear the costs of these fossil fuel plants when they become stranded assets.
“To hasten this transition, the government should 1) start improving grid connectivity to support the entry of utility scale solar and wind facilities; 2) increase the support for power generation through net metering; and 3) encourage investments in energy storage and smart grids.
“Flexibility will be foundational for the energy grid of the future, and the government needs to start developing the infrastructure and ensure policy support to enable greater grid flexibility. These improvements in the distribution system will enable greater participation of variable renewables, paving the way for green and just Philippine energy transition.”
Media contact
Angeli Cantillana
Communications Campaigner, Greenpeace Southeast Asia – Philippines
[email protected] | +63 998 595 9733