NGCP invests over PhP300B in grid improvement projects

As the country’s sole power grid operator and since it took over transmission operations from the government in 2009, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has significantly expanded the country’s transmission network. Its roster of completed projects reflect the company’s dedication to its mandate of improving and expanding the grid.

Upgraded facilities, improved services for the nation

NGCP has so far invested PhP 300 billion into what was in 2009, the government’s aging transmission system. A total of 3,729 circuit-kilometers of transmission lines, 28 new substations, and an additional 31,190MVA of transformer capacity has been installed in the past 14 years.

From 2009 to 2022, the company completed 56 projects which include the following: the Mariveles-Hermosa 500kV Transmission Line, expanding the transmission capacity in the area to accommodate more than 2,500MW of generation from the Bataan Peninsula; the Luzon Voltage Improvement Projects Stages 1, 3, and 4, which provided additional MegaVolt Ampere (MVA) capacity to boost voltage; the San Jose-Quezon 230kV Transmission line 3 project, widening the power corridor serving Metro Manila; and the Pagbilao 500kV Extra High Voltage Substation, which accommodated the connection of around 1,420MW from power plants in Quezon province.

For Visayas, NGCP energized its Cebu-Negros-Panay 230kV Backbone Stage 1, interconnecting Cebu, Negros, and Panay for faster and more efficient power sharing; the Ormoc-Babatngon 138kV Transmission Line, reinforcing power transmission delivery in the Leyte and Samar provinces; the Calong Calong-Toledo-Colon-Cebu 138kV Transmission Line, constructed to create an N-1 system between Negros and Panay grids; and the Bohol 138kV Backbone Line, which solved the overloading condition and provided a more stable and reliable transmission network in Bohol.

In Mindanao, the company completed the Maramag-Bunawan 230kV Transmission Line, the first 230kV transmission line in the region; the Villanueva-Maramag 230kV Transmission Line, linking northern and southern Mindanao; the Aurora-Polanco 138kV Transmission Line, which mitigated voltage fluctuations in Zamboanga del Norte all the way to Misamis Occidental.

On 30 April 2023, NGCP successfully energized the PhP 52-Billion Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection project (MVIP), a landmark undertaking connecting the power grids of Visayas and Mindanao. The MVIP will provide a more reliable and sustainable transmission service as well as promote energy resource sharing.

More projects in the pipeline

NGCP’s Transmission Development Plan (TDP) details these priority projects to improve transmission backbones and alternative transmission corridors, and to develop resiliency policies for power transmission facilities.

The company is set to complete more projects in 2023, particularly critical projects such as the Hermosa-San Jose 500kV Transmission Line Project, Cebu-Negros-Panay Stage 3 Backbone Project, Nabas-Caticlan-Boracay Transmission Line Project, Cebu-Bohol Interconnection Project, and commence new projects approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission such as the Batangas-Mindoro Interconnection Project.

“NGCP’s PhP 300 Billion grid expansion, reinforcement, and upgrading initiatives from 2009 to present, as well as those in the pipeline, are meticulously planned by our engineers and updated year after year with careful consideration for the needs of every single area in the country,” NGCP noted. “We continue to be hopeful that improvements in all 3 sectors of the power delivery system are in sync with each other, so that one sector is not made to be the sole or principal solution to challenges in the other sectors,” the company stressed. “This is a system, and to make it robust, resilient and responsive to the needs of a fast growing economy, the direction and coordination must be clear, equally implemented, and objectively pursued. Our stakeholders can be assured that we remain committed to improving and delivering reliable power transmission services,” NGCP said.