Philippines: DOE Prepares for Malampaya's 20-Day Maintenance Shutdown

Philippines: DOE Prepares for Malampaya's 20-Day Maintenance Shutdown

The Malampaya gas field will undergo a maintenance shutdown from Jan. 28 to
Feb. 16. During the 20-day repair period, the Department of Energy (DOE)
ensures the readiness of all stakeholders and protection of consumers from
any market abuses. Read on to learn more about it.

DOE Preparations

In a press release, DOE said that to secure the sufficiency of power supply
during the shutdown period, it will closely coordinate with all Malampaya
stakeholders. Among them are the Malampaya Consortium, National Grid Corp.
of the Philippines (NGCP), Manila Electric Company (Meralco), Power Sector
Assets and Liabilities Management (PSALM) Corp., Philippine Electricity
Market Corp. (PEMC), power generation companies and other distribution
utilities.

DOE Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi ordered the delivery of materials,
equipment and other assets needed for the maintenance of Malampaya by Jan.
15. These materials are expected to be readily available for deployment to
assure that the repair activities will be done as scheduled.

Sufficient Power Supply

DOE said during the Malampaya's repair period, some power plants will also
undergo maintenance schedule. With this scenario, the lowest projected power
supply capacity during the period will be at 8,747 megawatts (MW) on Feb 18.
while the highest demand is projected to at 8,610 MW on Feb. 9.

DOE required the affected natural gas power plants to run on alternative or
replacement fuel to ensure sufficient power supply though it is more costly.
Natural gas like fuel only costs around P4 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) compared
to replacement fuel like diesel which can be priced at around P6 to P8 per
kWh. The DOE also readied the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) in which
around 900 MW are enrolled.

"The public should also be proactive in computing the effect of price
adjustments to be provided in the simulations given by the agencies
concerned for consumers to practice efficiency measures to avoid price
shocks," Cusi said.

Malampaya Project

The Malampaya Deep Water Gas-to-Power project is dubbed as one of the
largest and most significant industrial undertakings in Philippine history.
Malampaya employs a state-of-the-art deepwater technology that draws natural
gas from deep beneath the country's waters. The natural gas that is being
drawn fuels the three natural gas-fired power stations with a total
generating capacity of 2,700 MW to provide 40 to 45 percent of Luzon's power
generation requirements.

Malampaya project is led by the DOE. On the other hand, Shell Philippines
Exploration B.V. (SPEX) developed and operated the project on behalf of
joint venture partners Chevron Malampaya LLC and the PNOC Exploration Corp.
(PNOC EC).

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Link to Original Article:
http://www.ibtimes.ph/doe-prepares-malampayas-20-day-maintenance-shutdown-vi
deo-5610

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com