Year: 2024

During its media briefing, the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) discussed the highlights of the Philippine Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) operations for the preliminary October 2024 billing period.

The Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao regions recorded average demand increases from 9,746 MW, 1,955 MW, and 1,999 MW in September to 9,915 MW, 2,003 MW, and 2,054 MW in October 2024, respectively. Regarding demand levels, Luzon recorded a peak of 12,551 MW on 26 September 2024 at 14:25H, Visayas peaked at 2,549 MW on 30 September 2024 at 14:35H, and Mindanao reached a peak of 2,609 MW on 11 October 2024 at 14:05H.

In Luzon, prices increased from ₱3.80/kWh in September to ₱3.89/kWh in October. Similarly, prices in Visayas and Mindanao rose from ₱4.56 and ₱3.48/kWh to ₱5.93 and ₱5.20/kWh, respectively. System-wide, the average price in the WESM for the October 2024 billing period was ₱4.39/kWh, compared to ₱3.88/kWh in the previous billing month. The spot prices used in settlement also increased from ₱4.12 to ₱4.72/kWh between the September and October billing periods. This increase is attributed to a minimal rise in system demand, driven by activities for the upcoming Christmas season.

For the reserve market, the regional reserve capacity mix highlighted the dominance of hydro-based technologies in Luzon and Mindanao, while Visayas is primarily powered by oil-based technologies. This capacity mix influenced the regional prices, with higher costs for regulation, contingency, and dispatchable reserves in Visayas.
With the resumption of commercial operation of the reserve market on 05 August 2024, the reserve requirements set by the Grid Code were met, with the exception of Visayas for certain trading dates due to deficit in regulation reserves. Prior to this, available capacity often fell short of the required levels, which necessitated the scheduling of uncontracted capacity or capacity not covered by the Ancillary Services Procurement Agreement (ASPA) to ensure the grid’s reliability, security, and stability.

Notably maintaining grid reliability comes with associated costs, which are reflected in the zonal prices for each reserve type and region. High zonal prices typically indicate reserve shortages and the use of more expensive power plants, such as oil-based technologies, to meet reserve market needs.

Lower WESM average price is expected with a stable supply and improved demand situation as the colder months approach. IEMOP will continue to closely monitor supply, demand, and prices in the coming months.

The Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) is seeking qualified service providers/firms for the following projects:

1. Software Development Services for the Redesign and Enhancement of the Central Registration and Settlement System (CRSS)
2. Supply, Delivery, and Installation of UPS Batteries (Replacement) for the Symmetra 48kVA at the Eton Centris Main Site and Cebu Backup Site.

Interested service providers are invited to submit their Letters of Intent, addressed to Atty. Richard J. Nethercott, President and Chief Executive Officer.

Letters of Intent may be submitted via email to martin.escasura@iemop.ph and aps@iemop.ph or delivered in person to the IEMOP office at 9th Floor, Robinsons Equitable Tower, ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City, Philippines 1600. The submission deadline is on or before 20 September 2024.

For any inquiries, please contact the Bids and Awards Committee Secretariat at (+632) 5318-9376.

The Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (“IEMOP”) intends to procure Software Development Services for the IEMOP Electricity Market Management System – Market Dispatch Optimization Model (“IEMMS-MDOM”) [“The Project”].

IEMOP now invites Service Providers/Firms to submit their Letter of Intent for the Project, addressed to Atty. Richard J. Nethercott, President and Chief Executive Officer.

Please submit the same by e-mail to iemms.project@iemop.ph and or by hand to the IEMOP office at 9/F Robinsons Equitable Tower ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City, Philippines 1600 on or before 15 July 2024—Manila Time.

If you have questions, you can contact the Bids and Awards Committee Secretariat at (02) 5318-9376.

During its media briefing, the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) discussed the highlights of Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) operations from the April 2024 billing month up until the preliminary market outcomes as of 19 May 2024.

The Luzon region recorded an average demand increase from 9,385 MW in March to 10,310 MW in April 2024. Meanwhile, for Visayas and Mindanao, the average demand increased from 1,867 and 1,955 MW to 2,002 and 2,063 MW, respectively. The increase in demand, primarily driven by the summer heat waves, led to the recorded year-to-date peak levels in all grids. Luzon demand recorded a new peak at 14,011 MW on 24 April 2024, at 1455H, Visayas demand peaked at 2,581 MW on 24 April 2024, at 1430H, and Mindanao also recorded a new peak demand of 2,642 MW on 25 April 2024, at 1400H.

Meanwhile, supply levels for Luzon and Visayas were affected by both planned and forced outages. The first half of April saw ample supply levels across all grids. However, towards the second half of April, forced outages of generating plants resulted to yellow alert and red alert conditions, indicating potential reserve supply insufficiency in the grid. It was recorded that 19.68% of the trading intervals for April were imposed with Secondary Price Cap compared to 7.04% in March. Consequently, the final average spot prices notably increased. In Luzon, prices increased from 5.34 PhP/kWh in March to 6.63 PhP/kWh in April. Similarly, Visayas experienced an increase from 6.38 PhP/kWh to 8.73 PhP/kWh, while Mindanao saw prices increase from 4.21 PhP/kWh to 6.43 PhP/kWh. System-wide, the average price in the WESM for April 2024 was 6.90 PhP/kWh compared to 5.19 PhP/kWh in March 2024.

Higher-priced power plants were cleared and scheduled to meet the system demand, particularly oil-based power plants, which generated 1.9% of the energy mix in April versus 0.8% in March 2024. The dispatch of these more expensive power plants contributed to the higher electricity prices during the month.

Based on the preliminary market data as of 19 May 2024, despite the tamer heat wave condition as sporadic rain falls across the country, yellow alerts continued to be experienced in the Luzon and Visayas grids while normal grid conditions prevailed in Mindanao. The regional spot prices obtained are 7.88 PhP/kWh, 8.43 PhP/kWh, and 6.98 PhP/kWh, respectively, for Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Between the market price in April and May (preliminary), a potential increase of 18.85% can be observed in Luzon, a 3.44% decrease in Visayas, and an 8.55% increase in Mindanao. While the system average price as of 19 May 2024 is estimated at 7.85 PhP/kWh, prices obtained for the May billing period are indicative and subject to pricing validation, which will be done towards the end of the current WESM billing month.

IEMOP emphasized the importance of continuing investments in the generation sector to cope with the country’s increasing electricity demand. IEMOP remains committed to providing efficient and reliable electricity market operations to all WESM stakeholders and will continue to closely monitor the supply, demand, and prices in the coming months.

IEMOP shares the industry’s concern on recently recorded all-time high energy demand across all regions, exacerbated by the current heat wave. This present demand situation has put a strain on available generation capacities leading to the issuances of Yellow and Red Alerts by the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP). Pursuant to its mandate to operate the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) in accordance with policy and regulatory issuances promulgated by the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), IEMOP, in coordination with the NGCP, will implement the recently issued ERC Order dated 30 April 2024 for ERC Case No.2024-017MC, entitled In the Matter of Declaration of Market Suspension During Red Alerts During Summer Months of 2024.

IEMOP remains hopeful that the supply levels will improve so the grid may continuously operate under normal conditions. Under the WESM Rules, the ERC may suspend normal operations of the WESM in cases of (a) natural calamities or (b) following the official declaration of a national or international security emergency by the President of the Republic. During the market suspension, the administered pricing based on the ERC approved Price Determination Methodology (PDM) shall be imposed. In this pricing mechanism, the weighted average of the last four (4) similar trading days and dispatch intervals prices shall be considered.

From 16 to 18 April 2024, the average supply, demand, and prices in the spot market are as follows:

Note that these prices are still subject to pricing validations/corrections which will be done towards the end of the current WESM billing month.
Effective WESM rates are computed based on the total monthly spot transactions.

The system peak demand has reached 18,256 MW on 17 April 2024 at 1450H with a supply of 20,108 MW. While the margin of supply is currently meeting demand, localized power interruptions have been experienced in areas of extremely high demand. IEMOP supports the Department of Energy’s campaign to implement energy conservation measures and optimize energy usage during peak hours in both businesses and households.

Iloilo City, Philippines

In coordination with the Department of Energy (DOE), the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC), the Philippine Electricity Market Corporation (PEMC), and in partnership with MORE Electric and Power Corporation, the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines Inc. (IEMOP) is delighted to present this year’s Philippine Electric Power Industry Forum (PEPIF) today, 5 April 2024, at the Iloilo Convention Center (ICON) with the theme, “Powering a Sustainable and Secure Energy Future for the Country”.

Now in its second year, PEPIF aims to bring all sectors of the electric power industry together to discuss vital issues and promote synergy in the industry.

Recognizing the country’s goal toward sustainable energy, PEPIF 2024 covers the following topics:

• Philippine Energy Transition Plan – Opportunities and Challenges in the Renewable Sector
• Regulations and Market Mechanisms to Support RE Development
• Achieving 100% Rural Electrification through Renewable Energy
• National Transmission Corporation’s (TransCo) Role in a Sustainable Power System Infrastructure
• Transmission Development Plan and Integration of Renewable Energy for a Reliable and Secure Grid
• Achieving RE Mix Targets while Ensuring Reliable Supply for End-Users
• Country’s Path Towards Achieving a Sustainable and Secure Energy Future

In its latest monthly briefing, the Independent Electricity Market Operator of the Philippines (IEMOP) reported the latest market data as of 24 March 2024 which indicated a stable supply averaging around 18,900 megawatts (MW). However, the period saw a notable surge in average demand, escalating from 12,372 MW in February to 13,185 MW in March. This increase was observed across regions, with Luzon exhibiting a 6.1% increase, followed by Visayas at 6.4%, and Mindanao at 8.4%.

The higher demand levels eventually resulted in a lower supply margin, dropping by 19% from 4,757 MW last February to 3,860 MW as of March 24. This drop occurred despite an average supply increase of 138 MW.

IEMOP likewise reported planned and forced outages from several power plants during the first week of March. The combined planned outages, mainly from large conventional generators such as coal, natural gas, geothermal, and hydroelectric plants totaled 2,724 MW. Additionally, there were capacities that went on forced outages amounting to a total of 1,062 MW largely from coal and natural gas plants during the same period.

Consequently, the average price of electricity experienced a marked increase, climbing from 4.03 PhP/kWh to 5.46 PhP/kWh as of preliminary data in March 2024. Regionally, the average spot price surged in Luzon from 3.97 PhP/kWh in February 2024 to 5.26 PhP/kWh in March 2024, whereas Visayas and Mindanao witnessed price hikes of 4.58 PhP/kWh to 6.26 PhP/kWh and 3.71 PhP/kWh to 4.20 PhP/kWh, respectively.

Withal, the Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection Project (MVIP) has significantly improved supply security in the Visayas and Luzon grids by allowing excess power of up to 450 MW to be exported from the Mindanao grid. On average, The MVIP allowed an average of 341 MW to be exported to Visayas, whereas the Leyte-Luzon HVDC link connecting Visayas to Luzon provided an average of additional 296 MW to support meeting the demand in the Luzon grid.

SAVE THE DATE

To all WESM members, IEMOP is pleased to announce this year’s upcoming Market Participants Update (MPU) to be held on 4 April 2024 at the Courtyard by Marriott in Iloilo City.

IEMOP conducts the MPU at least once a year to apprise the WESM members of the latest market operations developments and provide an interactive venue for trading participants to raise their concerns and queries.

The MPU will then be followed by this year’s Philippine Electric Power Industry Forum (PEPIF) on 5 April 2024, at the Iloilo Convention Center (ICON) with the theme, “Powering a Sustainable and Secure Energy Future for the Country”.

Please stay tuned to IEMOP’s website and social media accounts for more announcements on registration.