Power outage hits parts of Metro Manila, nearby areas Thursday

The Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) has been submitting its annual financial and operating reports since 2003 – the year it was granted a legislative franchise under the Republic Act 9209, an official of the company clarified on Sunday.

MANILA, Philippines – Some 250,000 customers in parts of Metro Manila and nearby areas are experiencing a power supply interruption on Thursday evening as supply remains thin in Luzon and the Visayas.

In its advisory on Thursday evening, power distributor Manila Electric Co. (Meralco) said it started implementing manual load dropping (MLD) in parts of Metro Manila and the provinces of Bulacan, Cavite and Rizal.

Meralco said this affected 250,000 households in these areas.

“Meralco may continue implementing one-hour rotating power interruptions if needed as part of its responsibility to manage the power system,” Meralco Spokesperson and Head of Corporate Communications Joe Zaldarriaga said.

To manage the demand in its coverage area, Meralco implements an MLD in case a red alert is raised wherein electricity is cut in areas at a specific time.

“We ask for the understanding of our affected customers. Rest assured that we are working to manage the situation and will provide updates as needed,” he added.

Grid operator National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) raised red and yellow alerts in Luzon and Visayas grids on Thursday lasting several hours.

According to NGCP, nearly 40 power plants are offline in both regions while around 10 other facilities reduced their output.