Philippine Power Statistics: a Tool in Preventing Energy Shortage

As Professor D. P. Kothari of the Centre for Energy Studies, IIT Delhi would say, electric energy is an essential ingredient in everything we do. It must be generated in bulk using a variety of electric power systems that convert different forms of energy into electrical energy to accommodate every consumer.

In the Philippines, primary sources of energy that share in the gross power generation are coal, hydro, natural gas, oil and some renewable sources such as geothermal, wind and solar. But in spite of the energy sources employed in our country, power failures were never out of the picture. With a uniquely diverse geography, local electric utilities have joined in complex networks called grids which allow sharing of electricity by grid to improve overall reliability. This solution, however, can create a risk of widespread failure. Nevertheless, the potential for fiasco is overridden by its benefits.

In this epoch of industrialization, where energy consumption and/or demand are ever-increasing, power shortages, in truth, are most unwanted. Plus, work became very dependent on power; an ill-equipped power system will slow down the development of the community.

In response to this, the Department of Energy (DOE) strives to reduce these unwanted crises by devising an energy plan (PEP). To achieve a workable energy plan, the trends of the power generation, installed capacity and consumption in the Philippines in the preceding years must be taken into account. Given a set past of energy supply and demand statistics and their trends, numerical methods such as extrapolation technique are utilized to establish the required trends for energy plans. After that, available resources are explored for additional generation capacity as to prevent possible shortages.

Based on the latest Philippine Power Statistics, it was found out that, generally, the installed generating capacity is very much sufficient to accommodate the system peak demand, giving no trace of possible power shortages. However, this seemingly flawless impression does not wrap it all up; other data, such as the energy consumption and generation, must also be considered.

The statistics showed that power generation is not that adequate for the supply of energy to the consumers. While generation in the Visayas grid was more than their consumption and that of Mindanao is just enough, the consumption in Luzon was higher than the energy they generate resulting to power shortages, which is unquestionably unwelcome in a developing community and ought to be solved. According to Kothari, energy and load forecasting plays a crucial role in any power system planning in preparation to the exponentially increasing load.

To establish a feasible forecasts and energy plan, it is essential to study the trends of the desired variables: consumption, generation and installed capacity. Hence, quality power statistics plays a vital role in planning to solve energy crises, both short- and long-term. For the short-term, albeit recurrent, problem of power shortages, power statistics provide us with the knowledge of how to properly distribute utilities or how to mix the energy sources. For the long-term goals, power statistics can help in achieving energy independence by making efficient use of energy as a way of life. In this fashion, the Philippine Power Statistics is a key to the advancement of our community.