MANILA, Philippines — The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) has warned that the Luzon and Visayas grids remain in a precarious state, with rotating brownouts and manual load shedding expected to continue, the power supply remains “severely insufficient” to meet the record-breaking demand of the current summer season.
The warning comes after nearly a million homes across Metro Manila and surrounding provinces experienced up to three hours of darkness on Wednesday and Thursday evenings.
The NGCP has implemented a series of “Red” and “Yellow” alerts across the two major island groups:
| Grid | Status | Timeframe (May 14) | Supply vs. Demand |
|---|---|---|---|
| Luzon | Red Alert | 4 p.m. – 10 p.m. | 12,479 MW vs. 12,595 MW |
| Luzon | Yellow Alert | 3 p.m. – 4 p.m. / 10 p.m. – 11 p.m. | Thin operating reserves |
| Visayas | Red Alert | 4 p.m. – 9 p.m. | 2,413 MW vs. 2,541 MW |
| Visayas | Yellow Alert | 3 p.m. – 4 p.m. / 9 p.m. – 11 p.m. | Critical operating margin |
The current energy crisis is driven by a combination of aging infrastructure, maintenance delays, and the broader 2026 geopolitical energy emergency.
- Forced Outages: A staggering 31 power plants across Luzon and Visayas are currently offline. In Luzon alone, 17 plants have been on forced outage since March 2026, while 14 others are running at “derated” (reduced) capacities.
- Unavailability: A total of 4,242.5 MW is currently missing from the Luzon grid—roughly 25% of the total required capacity.
- The “Middle East Factor”: Under the State of National Energy Emergency (Executive Order No. 110), the Philippines is struggling with a fuel crisis. Because many plants rely on imported oil and coal, high global prices and shipping disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz have made it difficult to keep “peaker” plants running at full steam.
To prevent a total system collapse (blackout), the NGCP and distributors like Meralco and Veco (Cebu) are performing Manual Load Dropping (MLD).
- Rotating Brownouts: Portions of Metro Manila, Bulacan, Cavite, Laguna, Rizal, and Batangas have seen “rotational” power cuts lasting 1 to 3 hours.
- Visayas Strain: In Cebu, Veco has scheduled similar interruptions as demand continues to outpace both local production and the power being exported from Mindanao via submarine cables.
- Interruptible Load Program (ILP): Large commercial customers (malls and factories) have been asked to run their own generators to de-load the grid, providing a small but vital buffer of about 240 MW to 300 MW.
- Yellow Alert: Issued when the operating margin is insufficient to meet the transmission grid’s contingency requirement. (Essentially: “Be careful; we’re running thin.”)
- Red Alert: Issued when the supply is insufficient to meet consumer demand. (Essentially: “Expect brownouts; the supply is literally gone.”)
The Department of Energy (DOE) and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) have demanded a full report from the NGCP and generation companies regarding the high volume of outages.
- Investigation: The ERC is looking into whether some plants are on “prolonged forced outages” to manipulate market prices, though most operators cite technical failures due to the extreme 42°C+ heat index.
- Conservation Appeal: Consumers are urged to set air conditioning units to 25°C, unplug unused appliances, and avoid using high-energy devices (like washing machines or electric ovens) during the peak hours of 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.