The Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) recently approved the Laguindingan 230 kV Substation Project of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP). Valued at P2.34 billion, it will address critical power supply issues and infrastructure challenges in Northern Mindanao.
(Also read: Siargao Blackout: A Costly Disruption)
The new 230 kV substation is expected to ensure a stable power supply for Misamis Oriental I Electric Cooperative and provide Laguindingan Technopark, the province’s domestic industrial zone, with a high-power transmission corridor.
“Additionally, the project will address the overloading in the existing Opol Substation, which serves as the main power supply for the Laguindingan area, and address the limitations of the Tagoloan Substation, where several components require upgrading due to low interrupting capacity,” the ERC said in a press release.
The Laguindingan substation is part of the ongoing Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project (MVIP), which began in January 2024.
(Also read: Powering Progress: The Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project)
The ERC has mandated that the NGCP complete the project by 31 January 2025. “Failure to meet the deadline will subject NGCP to administrative penalties, as mandated by applicable laws and regulations,” the ERC said.
Last November 2024, the ERC imposed an administrative penalty totaling P12.3 million on the NGCP for 27 delayed transmission infrastructure projects:
- Opol Substation Project
- Toril Substation Project (Phase 2)
- Hermosa-Floridablanca 69kV Line Project
- Agus 2 Switchyard Upgrading Project
- Panitan-Nabas 138kV Line 2 Project
- Cebu-Negros-Panay 230kV Backbone Project (Stage 1)
- Western Luzon 500kV Backbone Project (Stage 1: Castillejos-Hermosa 500kV Transmission Line Project)
- Tuguegarao-Lal-Lo (Magapit) 230kV Transmission Line Project
- Manila (Navotas) 230kV Substation Project
- Bataan-Cavite/Metro Manila Transmission Line Project (Phase 1) Feasibility Study
- La Trinidad-Calot 69kV Line Project
- Tiwi Substation Upgrading Project
- Naga (Cebu) Substation Upgrading Project
- Clark- Mabiga 69kV Transmission Line Project
- Bataan 230kV Grid Reinforcement Project
- Relocation of Steel Pole of Hermosa-Duhat 230kV Transmission Line Project
- Mariveles- Balsik (Hermosa) 500kV Transmission Line Project
- North Luzon Substation Upgrading Project (Stage 1 and 2)
- South Luzon Substation Upgrading Project
- Luzon Voltage Improvement Project 3 (Stage 2)
- Luzon Voltage Improvement Project 4 (Stage 1 Schedule 2)
- Tagbilaran 69kV Substation Project
- Visayas Voltage Improvement Project
- Mindanao Substation Rehabilitation Project (State 1 and 2)
- Mindanao Substation Upgrading Project
- Manila/Navotas-Doña Imelda 230kv Transmission Line Project
- Cebu-Negros-Panay 230kV Backbone Project Stage 2 (Cebu Substation 230kV Upgrading)
“The Commission emphasized that the importance and urgency of these projects were central to its decision to approve NGCP’s CAPEX applications,” the electric power industry regulator said.
“It must be emphasized that any delay and unrealized CAPEX project is prejudicial to the public. Respondent NGCP, itself, had argued numerous times in its applications that these projects will help ensure the quality, reliability, security, and affordability of the supply of electric power by accommodating the increasing demand of electricity. Failure to timely implement these projects, therefore, will have an impact on [the] reliability of the transmission system which it operates, and consequently, on the cost of electricity that consumers have to pay,” the ERC said.
Sources:
https://www.erc.gov.ph/Press-Singular/83926
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1241116
https://www.erc.gov.ph/Press-Singular/83932
