GREEN, BUT STUCK: NEA RE Push for Electric Coops in W. Visayas Challenged By Weak Grid

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

Electric cooperatives (ECs) in Western Visayas are highly encouraged to shift to renewable energy (RE) sources, but persistent issues with the power grid continue to pose major challenges, according to the National Electrification Administration (NEA).

NEA Administrator Antonio Mariano Almeda said the agency has been pushing ECs to enter into power supply agreements with RE plants to help lower electricity rates.

However, the limitations of the grid infrastructure remain a major obstacle.

“RE can bring down the cost, but the big question there is whether the grid is ready for the entry of so many RE within the system,” he told Daily Guardian in a phone call.

He pointed to the widespread blackout that affected Panay Island in early January 2024 as a clear example of the grid’s vulnerability.

The outage, which lasted three days, was triggered by the simultaneous tripping of multiple major coal-fired power plants.

“A lot of REs are hooked up in the grid, and the grid was not ready to accommodate all fluctuations caused by RE plants, and it gave way,” he explained.

Almeda stressed that RE generated in Western Visayas faces limitations in transferring to Panay Island primarily due to grid congestion and transmission bottlenecks.

Panay’s sub-grid is at the tail end of the Visayas transmission network and is connected to Negros Island only by a limited-capacity submarine cable, which restricts power flow between islands.

This constrained transmission capacity causes difficulties in fully utilizing excess renewable power generated in Negros or other parts of Western Visayas to supply Panay or export Panay’s own excess power.

With the Cebu-Negros-Panay 230-kV Backbone Project’s completion and energization in March 2024, Almeda said the multi-island transmission project could be a big help in facilitating the integration of renewable energy in the Visayas region.

Meanwhile, areas in Western Visayas served by private distribution utilities compared to other ECs have been offering lower electricity rates in recent months.

“There are many factors, and the volatility of market electricity rates is strongly dependent on market forces. It depends on when, what is procured, and what is the price of coal,” he said.

He also clarified that having multiple power sources doesn’t automatically lead to lower rates.

Institutional Violations Only

NEA has recently filed criminal complaints against officials of three ECs — one in Mindanao and two in Luzon — for alleged mismanagement and fund anomalies.

The filing was due to allegations of large-scale mismanagement, embezzlement and fund anomalies involving employees’ retirement funds and cooperative funds.

In the case of Western Visayas, Almeda said there is no pending investigation related to administrative or criminal charges.

He acknowledged that there have been minor institutional violations among some ECs in the region, but these have already been resolved through NEA’s intervention.

“There were a few remote cases, but they were addressed accordingly — basically more on the institutional violations and not following NEA guidelines,” he said.

“The common of which are nonconformity with the basic NEA rules as provided by Republic Act 10531,” he added.

Most cases, according to Almeda, involve grave misconduct such as EC directors not calling for mandated elections.