NGCP energizes Hermosa-San Jose

POWER transmission grid operator National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) on Sunday said that they had successfully energized the Hermosa-San Jose (HSJ) 500-kilovolt (kV) transmission line, an energy project of national significance which will further improve the reliability of the Luzon transmission backbone.

In a statement, the NGCP spans the provinces of Bulacan, Pampanga and Bataan. It is expected to strengthen the transmission services and accommodate new bulk power generation from the Bataan area.

“The Hermosa-San Jose 500 kV project is a major component in our planned Luzon 500-kV transmission backbone. Despite many challenges, our teams worked 24/7 to complete this facility. With the energization of the line comes improved transmission from generation sources towards the load center Metro Manila and nearby provinces,” the NGCP said.

Besides the new transmission line from Bulacan to Bataan, the project includes the construction of a new 500-kV Hermosa Substation, which will enable better voltage regulation and power transfer from existing 230-kV facilities in the area.

The NGCP is slated to complete other critical projects in Visayas and Mindanao in the coming months. “Our stakeholders can be assured that we will continue our grid improvement, expansion, and reinforcement initiatives to deliver quality and reliable transmission services,” the NGCP said.

The project was provisionally approved by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) with a cost of P10.2 billion.

However, the ERC has only allowed the partial recovery of P19 million or less than 1 percent of the actual project cost.

Given the urgent need to widen the transmission highway along the Bataan corridor, the NGCP implemented the HSJ transmission line, setting aside for later, the issue of recovery approvals from the ERC.

“Our priority has and will always be doing what is best for the public. Financial considerations can take a back seat and be threshed out later,” Henry Sy Jr., a major stockholder, and the company’s former president and CEO.

“We hope to correct the impression that the consumers are somehow shortchanged with how rates are computed. Our commitment has never wavered: we serve the public, and we work within the legal and regulatory framework of our concession and franchise,” Sy emphasized.