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Natural gas usage jumps significantly in H1
The Philippine Star, 13 October 2003
By: Donnabelle L. Gatdula
The share of natural gas in the country's power generation mix increased substantially to 12.4 percent in the first semester of 2003 from 3.5 percent in the same period in 2002, data from the National Power Corp. (Napocor) showed. Napocor attributed the almost four-fold increase in the share of natural gas in the country's power generation to the full commercial operation of the Ilijan gas-fired power plant in Batangas to 2,448 gigawatthours (GWh) for the period January to June this year from only 652.27 GWh last year.
Generation mix represents the proportion of the different fuel types that Napocor uses to run its power plants. Over the past years, Napocor has managed to help reduce the country's dependence on imported fuel oil and effectively utilized indigenous sources of energy such as natural gas, hydro, and geothermal. Based on the report made by Napocor's sales and services department coal-fired power plants however, continue to account for the biggest share of the total generation with 6.337 GWh or a 32.37 percent share during the period January to June this year. However, this represents a slight drop from the share of 41.42 percent or 7,834.97 GWh.
Napocor attributed the lower production of the coal plants to the three-week long shutdown of Unit II of Masinloc plant in Zambales due to fuel supply problems. Another factor that contributed to the decline was due to technical problems experienced by Napocor's Binan and Calaca-Sta. Rosa substations. Geothermal power plants accounted for the second-biggest share in overall generation with 5,208 GWh or 26.6 percent.
The share of hydro-electric plants in the generation mix went down to 14.77 percent or 2,892 GWh during the first six months from 15.86 percent a year ago due to very low production of hydro-based power facilities during the dry season. Napocor expects that hydro power plants' share in the mix will increase by two percent in the second half of the year due to recent typhoons and the heavy rainfall predicted for the next few months.
The share of other plant types in the generation mix were as follows: diesel, 9.56 percent (up from 6.47 percent in 2002); oil thermal, 2.56 percent (down from 2.72 percent); combined-cycle, 1.65 percent (down from 2.53 percent); and gas turbine, 0.08 percent (down from 0.14 percent). Napocor's gross generation also went up by 3.5 percent to 19,577.50 gigawatthours (GWh) during the first semester of 2003 from 18,914.74 GWh in the same period in 2002.
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