CEBU began the fourth week of August under a red alert, as the National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) warned of insufficient power supply in the Visayas grid during the evening peak on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026.
The latest alert is part of a weeklong stretch of power supply warnings in the Visayas. NGCP said yellow alerts were issued throughout the week since Aug. 16, except on Aug. 22, while red alerts were declared on Aug. 17, 18, 19 and again on Aug. 24.
On Monday, NGCP placed the Visayas grid under yellow alert from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. and again from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m., before raising the status to red alert from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
As of 1:20 p.m., available capacity stood at 2,318 megawatts (MW), below the projected peak demand of 2,431 MW.
NGCP said seven power plants were on forced outage this month, while 14 were operating at reduced capacities, leaving 919 MW unavailable to the grid. The extended yellow alert was partly due to the unavailability of three large coal-fired plants in the Visayas — Therma Visayas Unit I 1, Therma Visayas Unit 2 and Kepco SPC Power Corp. Unit 1.
The Visayas also had limited power imports from Mindanao because of high demand in the southern grid. The demand forecast for the Visayas at 10 p.m. was raised by 71 MW, further extending the yellow alert.
Putting pressure
The recurring alerts are highlighting the pressure on Cebu’s power system as economic activity and electricity demand continue to grow.
Cebu Gov. Pamela Baricuatro said that the province must strengthen its power system to prevent electricity constraints from undermining economic growth.
“One of our biggest concerns today is power stability,” Baricuatro said, citing the yellow alerts experienced by Cebu in recent months.
“As our economy grows and the electricity demand continues to increase, we must also strengthen the systems that keep our homes, businesses, hospitals, schools, and industries running,” she said.
Cebu is adding battery storage and transmission capacity as part of efforts to improve grid reliability.
Investments
In Naga City, a 60-MW battery energy storage system broke ground on July 1, led by Aboitiz Power Corp.
In Toledo City, Meralco PowerGen Corp. energized the first phase of its battery storage project in May, with 25 MW of capacity and 56.44 megawatt-hours of storage.
But storage alone will not resolve Cebu’s power requirements. Batteries need generation capacity to charge and transmission infrastructure to deliver electricity where it is needed.
The Department of Energy, citing data as of May, reported 2,179.47 MW of committed renewable energy capacity in the Visayas and 419.9 MW of committed energy storage capacity.
Transmission upgrades are also underway. NGCP is building the Cebu-Lapu-Lapu 230-kilovolt transmission line and the Lapu-Lapu 230-kV substation to support demand in Metro Cebu and Mactan Island and accommodate additional renewable energy capacity.
The investments come as Central Visayas remained the largest regional economy outside Metro Manila in 2025, growing 3.7 percent to P1.32 trillion despite trade pressures and natural disasters.
For Cebu, the issue is increasingly about whether generation, storage and transmission projects can be completed and connected to the grid at the pace required by demand.
Baricuatro said the province is pursuing a longer-term approach through a proposed Provincial Energy Master Plan that would align national energy policy, local priorities and private-sector initiatives.
The plan aims to make Cebu “energy-secure, climate-resilient and future-ready.”
NGCP defines a red alert as a condition in which available supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand and the transmission grid’s regulating requirement.
A yellow alert means the operating margin is insufficient to meet the grid’s contingency requirement. / KOC