NGCP eyes P23.9-B subsea cable for Mindoro power supply

The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) wants to build a P23.9-billion submarine cable infrastructure to provide a reliable supply of electricity to Mindoro Island from the Luzon grid.

In a file submitted to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, the NGCP proposed to deploy a 500-kilovolt (kV) subsea cable that crosses the Verde Island Passage (VIP) between Lobo, Batangas and Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro.

The installation would include 28.5 kilometers of seven power cables that will be laid down under VIP waters.

The Department of Energy has certified the plan as an energy project of national significance. NGCP said Mindoro Island “remains an isolated grid” that relies on localized generation.

The grid operator said Mindoro is “vulnerable to fuel cost fluctuations, outages and insufficient capacity to meet growing demand.”

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This, the NGCP noted, has been affecting households, commercial establishments, public facilities and critical services.

Along ageing network and fuel transport issues that face local power cooperatives there, residents on the island may suffer “prolonged power interruptions and limit opportunities for economic growth and service delivery.”