More participants sign up for ILP

MANILA, Philippines - Power utility giant Manila Electric Co. (Meralco), and the Department of Energy (DOE) continue to draw in more participants for the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) which would help ease projected blackouts this summer.

As of Jan. 20, total committed capacity under the ILP has reached 685.07 megawatts from customers of Meralco and contestable customers or those with a monthly electricity demand of at least one megawatt and who can source their power supply from retail electricity suppliers.

Of the 685.07 MW, 224.22 MW are from Meralco customers and 460.85 MW are from contestable customers.

Meralco is still eyeing potential commitments of 233.30 MW from its customers and contestable customers.

The latest figure, however, is still below the 1,000-MW target but the DOE and Meralco continue to talk to more potential participants.

Under the ILP scheme, big power users will be asked to run their own generators when supply is short in the summer months, instead of getting their power from the Luzon grid. In exchange, they will be compensated for their fuel costs.

The electricity that would not be taken from the grid would be available to households and other users, sparing them from rotating blackouts.

There is a projected power supply shortage this summer of at least 700 MW due to higher demand during the hot months.

 The three largest participants in the ILP are SM Prime Holdings Inc., the mall development arm of the SM Group with 57.96 MW, Robinsons Land Corp., the property development arm of the Gokongwei Group with capacity of 23.15 MW and Waltermart Malls with 14.30 MW.

As early as December 2013, the DOE has called on Meralco for the introduction of the ILP as a last resort. By July 2014, the power distribution company was able to sign up a total of 115 MW.

Presently, there are still ongoing negotiations for prospective participants.

Energy Secretary Carlos Jericho Petilla said that several meetings and invitations have been scheduled to secure more participants before the end of the month.