The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has warned that Mindanao’s power reserve margin is gradually thinning, and that new power plants must be built to prevent the region from sliding back into prolonged brownouts.
NGCP spokesperson Atty. Cynthia Alabanza raised the concern during an interview on DZRH’s Special on Saturday on May 16: “Habang tumatagal, ilang taon na rin ho ang nakaraan mula nung maramihang planta ang nagtayuan dun, nauubos na rin ho ‘yan unti-unti.”
Alabanza said Mindanao currently has sufficient power supply, largely due to a wave of power plant construction that took place roughly ten years ago. “Right now naman po, sapat pa ang supply ng kuryente sa Mindanao,” she said.
However, she warned that the reserve built up by those plants is being steadily consumed as electricity demand continues to grow. She noted that even during the pandemic, when much of the country was under lockdown, power consumption continued to rise rather than decline.
Alabanza said Mindanao will need new power plants to avoid entering what she called a “state of deficiency”—a condition where supply can no longer meet demand.
“Kailangan na rin hong magtayo ng panibagong planta sa Mindanao para ho hindi sila pumasok dun sa state of deficiency,” she said.
She pointed to the period around 2011 and 2012 as a cautionary example, when Mindanao suffered nearly daily power interruptions before new plants were constructed.
“Napakahaba ho ng mga brownout sa Mindanao. Dumaan din ho sila diyan sa halos araw-araw na power interruptions,” Alabanza recalled.
The situation was only resolved when sufficient generating capacity was added to the Mindanao grid. Alabanza said the same solution will be needed again as the region’s reserve continues to shrink.
She emphasized that having an adequate reserve margin is critical not just for Mindanao but for all grids, as it provides a buffer that prevents a single plant outage from cascading into widespread power interruptions.
Alabanza made the remarks in the context of a broader discussion on the country’s power supply situation, noting that electricity consumption nationwide shows no signs of decreasing.
“Habang tumatagal naman po, hindi naman po nababawasan ang konsumo ng kuryente. Nadadagdagan pa ‘yan,” she said.
She urged stakeholders to prioritize the construction of new generating capacity across all grids to ensure stable power supply for Filipino consumers in the years ahead.
