House probe sought on power grid’s frequent yellow, red alerts

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives is being asked to investigate the frequent yellow and red alerts raised by the country’s electrical grid amid fears that the energy crisis might be exploited by companies seeking to increase power rates.

Lawmakers from the House Makabayan bloc filed House Resolution (HR) No. 1690 on Monday, calling for a probe into the cause of the constant alerts raised by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) and whether or not these were legitimate alerts.

“The Philippines has been experiencing almost daily red and yellow power alerts due to the forced shutdown of almost 50 power plants, causing instability in the power supply and leading to increased power rates,” the bloc, composed of ACT Teachers party-list Rep. France Castro, Gabriela party-list Rep. Arlene Brosas, and Kabataan party-list Rep. Raoul Manuel, said in the resolution.

“Concerns have been raised over the exploitation of the energy crisis by power generators to raise rates, emphasizing the negative impact on consumers and urging for accountability from the Department of Energy (DOE), Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), and generation companies,” they added.

According to the three lawmakers, the House needs to conduct an investigation because companies involved in the power supply chain should not be allowed to pass on higher costs to consumers.

“It is imperative to conduct a thorough investigation into the actions of generation companies during plant failures, to determine the extent of their responsibility in the current energy crisis and to hold them accountable for any exploitative practices that harm consumers,” the lawmakers said.

“There is a pressing need to shift the burden of higher power rates onto generation companies during outages, ensuring that they bear the cost of disruptions and preventing them from passing on these costs to consumers, thereby safeguarding consumer rights and promoting fair practices in the energy sector,” they added.

Over the past few weeks, yellow and red alerts raised by the NGCP have become daily occurrences due to the thinning electric supply, which is attributed to higher consumption during the country’s dry and hot season.

READ: Luzon, Visayas in second week of red, yellow alert

Earlier, NGCP announced that the Luzon and Visayas grids are under yellow alert due to a low difference between the peak demand and the available capacity — 13,902 megawatts (MW) to 14,950 MW, respectively.

READ: Whole PH on power alert as supply dips

This is not the first time the Makabayan bloc called for a probe into the power crisis affecting the country.  Last May 2023, the three solons also pressed the House to probe the brownouts that affected Metro Manila and other provinces during the same year, despite a previous assurance from the Department of Energy (DOE) that there would be no power interruption for the dry season.