CEBU and the rest of the Visayas should grow an optimum mix of traditional and renewable energy (RE) capacities to ensure power reliability and affordability, considering projected annual increases in electricity demand.
“The power demand of Cebu year-on-year is exceeding the national average. If we are even to be able to match the phenomenal growth that Cebu is experiencing right now, we would have to be very serious about generating more [power] capacity,” said Cebu Gov. Gwendolyn Garcia during The Freeman’s “Powering Cebu” business forum.
With projections that Cebu and the Visayas will sustain their economic expansion, the Department of Energy anticipates that the region’s electricity demand will grow to the point that it will require a big chunk of the available power capacity by 2050, together with Mindanao.
Peak demand in the Visayas is seen to increase from 2,464 megawatts in 2023 to 2,864 megawatts by 2026 and 10,678 megawatts by 2050, with Cebu expected to demand as much as half.
With the projected increase in electricity demand amid the influx of more variable renewable energy capacities such as solar and wind, Aboitiz Power Corp. Thermal Group Chief Engineering and Projects Officer Don Paulino said that the current fleet of baseload sources would provide balance and complement the intermittency.
“The direction to have renewable energy is very important not just from a climate change [lens] but also from a mix perspective,” Paulino stressed, adding that this should be complemented with a proper baseload.
