New NGCP Facility to Benefit Cebu, Bohol

The newest facility constructed by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) is seen to benefit the power consumers of Cebu and Bohol provinces.

NGCP’s newest facility, the Calong-calong–Toledo–Colon 138-kiloVolt transmission project, energized on August 22, will directly benefit the power users in the two islands, according to a press statement from NGCP.

A 52-circuit kilometer transmission line, the upgrade of the substation in Toledo, and the expansion of substations in Calong-calong and Colon are among the components of this project designed to boost the Visayas grid’s capability and accommodate the 246-megaWatt (MW) power plants of Cebu Energy Development Corporation (CEDC) and the 82-MW coal-fired plant of Toledo Power Company.

“The completion of this project fulfilled the N-1 requirement of the transmission corridor in the Western Cebu area. This means a wider, more reliable highway for power suppliers to transmit supply to customers, particularly those served by the plants such as VECO and other distribution utilities in Cebu and Bohol. With this enhanced reliability, supply from Cebu power plants can potentially reach as far as Luzon,” stated NGCP.

The additional capacity from these facilities enables NGCP to comply with the N-1 provision of the Philippine Grid Code.

Under the Philippine Grid Code, N-1 requires back up equipment to prevent outage when other facilities are not available or on scheduled shutdown.

“This development is the result of a nationwide program of facility upgrades to ensure that our lines and substations operate at an optimal level and at the same time, ready to accommodate future demand or supply. NGCP is confident we can replicate this achievement throughout the rest of our facilities in Visayas,” stated NGCP.

Other components of the newly completed facility are a new relay building to house associated substation equipment, sentry towers to ensure perimeter security, and slope protection for the substation and transmission towers to ensure structural stability.

NGCP is a privately owned corporation in charge of operating, maintaining, and developing the country’s power grid.

It transmits high-voltage electricity through “power superhighways” that include the interconnected system of transmission lines, towers, substations, and related assets.

The consortium, which holds the 25-year concession contract to operate the country’s power transmission network, is comprised of Monte Oro Grid Resources Corp. led by Henry Sy, Jr., Calaca High Power Corporation led by Robert Coyiuto, Jr., and the State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC) as technical partner. (rmn/PIA7-Cebu/NGCP)