Summary:
The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines placed the Visayas grid under an extended yellow alert on Thursday, May 21, 2026, marking the grid's fourth consecutive alert this week.
Three key generating units at Therma Visayas Inc. and Panay Energy Development Corp. remain on forced outages, while 14 other plants operate at derated capacities, reducing potential supply by 867 MW.
Driven by extreme heat, the projected peak demand of 2,486 MW left a narrow safety buffer of 182 MW, prompting the Cebu City Government to urge residents to reduce power consumption.
SUSTAINED demand for electricity during hot weather combined with power plant shutdowns has triggered a fourth yellow warning this week in the Visayas, marking the fifth time the grid has faced this alert this month.
The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) placed the Visayas grid on an extended yellow alert from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday, May 21, 2026. It declared the warning after determining that the operating margin was too narrow to meet contingency requirements.
Under the latest afternoon projections, the multi-province power system had an available capacity of 2,668 megawatts (MW) against a projected peak demand of 2,486 MW, leaving a safety buffer of only 182 MW.
How did a series of power plant failures and rising temperatures push the Visayas power grid to its limit, and what does this mean for consumers facing potential outages?
Plant outages reduce power supply
The immediate cause of the low capacity stems from the ongoing forced outages of three key generating units at two major coal-fired facilities that began last week. These offline units include Units 1 and 2 of Therma Visayas Inc. (TVI) and Unit 3 of the Panay Energy Development Corp. These unexpected shutdowns have stripped the grid of crucial power reserves during a period of high consumption.
The Department of Energy launched immediate field inspections to assess the mechanical issues that caused these major units to go offline.
Longstanding deficits weaken grid stability
This sudden loss of power compounds a longstanding supply strain across the grid. More than 10 other power plants in the Visayas have remained completely offline since 2021. Additionally, 14 power plants are currently operating at derated capacities, which reduces the grid’s potential supply by a total of 867 MW. This chronic deficit means the grid lacks the depth to easily absorb new outages, leaving the entire system vulnerable whenever a major plant fails.
Extreme heat drives consecutive warnings
The current energy crisis has built up over more than a week of extreme heat, which has driven up consumer demand for cooling. The NGCP declared the first yellow alert of this cycle on May 12 after mechanical issues first hit the TVI and Panay Energy Development Corp. units.
Following a brief weekend reprieve, a yellow alert returned on Monday, May 18, when peak demand rose to 2,585 MW against an available capacity of 2,683 MW. The grid remained under a yellow alert on Tuesday, May 19, as demand reached 2,594 MW while capacity stood at 2,691 MW.
High demand forced a third consecutive alert on Wednesday, May 20, which operators extended from 4 to 8 p.m. after grid-wide demand surged by an additional 95 megawatts.
Supply strain threatens daily operations
For the general public, these consecutive yellow alerts signal a heightened risk of rotational brownouts if further plants fail or if demand exceeds projections. Although a yellow alert does not automatically trigger immediate power cuts, it means the grid has lost its safety cushion.
The Cebu City Government has urged residents to reduce power consumption during peak hours to help prevent rotational brownouts in the city. The National Government is also monitoring the situation to coordinate potential emergency measures, while the Department of Energy works with power generators to expedite the repair of the offline coal-fired units. / FROM PNA
