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Manila Bulletin devider Business devider Legal hurdle impedes completion of 'nationally connected' power grid

Legal hurdle impedes completion of 'nationally connected' power grid

Published Nov 9, 2023 11:37 pm

At A Glance

  • The full commercial operation of the MVIP project is being pushed aggressively by the Department of Energy (DOE) because that will enable the export of Mindanao's surplus capacity to the tight supply-hobbled Luzon and Visayas grids.

The long-time dream of the country to have a single-connected grid nationwide may take a little longer, as one leg of the infrastructure development toward the concretization of the P51.3 billion Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project (MVIP) is being impeded by a temporary restraining order (TRO) issued by the Supreme Court.

On top of that, the TRO affecting the construction of the 230-kilovolt Cebu-Magdugo transmission line project of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) had also put a brake on the Cebu-Negros-Panay (CNP) stage 3 backbone project; that in turn will continually affect the dispatch of renewable energy (RE) capacities in the Visayas grid.

“The completion of the Cebu-Magdugo 230kV line is crucial to fully utilize the 450MW transfer of power from the Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project on the Visayas side,” NGCP explained.

The full commercial operation of the MVIP project, in particular, is being pushed aggressively by the Department of Energy (DOE) because that will enable the export of Mindanao’s surplus capacity to the tight supply-hobbled Luzon and Visayas grids.

“NGCP is expecting an extended delay on the completion of one its biggest power grid expansion projects when a TRO was issued against the construction of its Cebu-Magdugo 230kV line, a component of the Cebu-Negros-Panay Stage 3 Backbone Project crucial to the full operation of the Mindanao-Visayas interconnection,” the transmission firm stressed.

The TRO was issued last September on account of the petition filed by the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA), a government-run agency which is under the Department of Tourism.

NGCP conveyed the “two tower sites fall under TIEZA’s property, which they intend to develop into a golf course.” The transmission firm, however, indicated that it was already issued ‘writ of possession’ for the property since October last year.

Following the issuance of the TRO, NGCP narrated that it “ceased all project-related operations near Tower 111 and the associated sections of Towers 110-112.”

The power firm had submitted its response to the petition for certiorari that had been lodged with the Supreme Court on September 26 this year, but it is still awaiting final resolution of the case.

“NGCP’s projects are all critical for improving the power grid and boosting economic development. Hindering the completion of these critical infrastructures will not just affect NGCP, but the communities and businesses affected by these delays,” the company emphasized.
Both the MVIP and CNP-stage 3 transmission projects had been classified as energy projects of national significance (EPNS), with NGCP emphasizing that these are “integral to economic development through the delivery of stable power transmission services and enabling of energy resource sharing.”

The MVIP spans around 184 circuit-kilometer (ckm) of high voltage direct current (HVDC) submarine transmission line connecting the power grids of Mindanao and Visayas with a transfer capacity of 450MW; and seen expandable to as much as 900MW.

As cast on blueprint, the project also comprises of converter stations in both regions and more than 500ckm of overhead lines to facilitate the flow of electricity across grids.

Related Tags

Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project temporary restraining order National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) Transmission projects
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