The Department of Energy and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan are looking to review Mindoro’s Power Development Master Plan as a continuation of the power sector Technical Cooperation Agreement signed in June 2018.
“Providing stable and reliable power in off-grid areas remains a considerable challenge to our goal of total electrification. Mindoro is one of those island provinces that has been plagued with power problems for decades,” Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said.
“With the help of METI, we will be able to undertake a comprehensive study of the Mindoro grid, and assess the feasibility of introducing a micro-grid system as a source of stable power. If everything goes well, Mindoro would serve as an electrification model for the rest of the off-grid islands in the Philippines,” he added.
Mindoro is the seventh largest island in the Philippines with a total land area of 10,571 square kilometers and a population of about two million people.
Many communities, however, remain without access power, while those with electricity suffer from unreliable services.
Under the proposal, the DOE has requested METI, together with Japanese firm, KPMG AZSA LLC, to provide technical assistance for the formulation of a comprehensive and integrated Power System Development and Operational PIan for Mindoro.
This will help build capacity toward the total electrification of all households in the island, especially the poor villages and communities in the peripheries of the remote uplands and coastal areas through the introduction of the micro-grid system.
A micro-grid is a small-scale power system able to provide stable power supply to off-grid areas by combining distributed power sources such as diesel generators, solar power, wind power, and storage batteries.
Under the 2018 TCA, the Japanese ministry, through KPMG AZSA LLC and NEWJEC Inc. held seminars and trainings on power operation and maintenance.
They also sent their specialists to gather information on the DOE’s initiatives on conducting performance audits of power generation and distribution system facilities.
This will serve as take off point for the next phase of the TCA, Cusi said.
Both parties are optimistic that the extension agreement will be signed within the year.