Grid alerts, high WESM prices signal need for power system flexibility
Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities PRESS RELEASE QUEZON CITY, 01 June 2026 –– The Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) emphasized that recurring grid alerts and sustained high prices in the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market (WESM) point to a fundamental gap in the Philippine power system: the lack of flexible generation capacity. Throughout May 2026, grid alerts have been repeatedly raised across Luzon and the Visayas, with multiple instances of yellow and red alerts declared due to thin operating reserves. These alerts have, at times, necessitated rotational blackouts in multiple areas across the country to keep the [...]
Indonesia’s export policy shift highlights PHL energy vulnerability
Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities PRESS RELEASE QUEZON CITY, 28 May 2026 — The Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) stressed the need to strengthen the Philippines’ long-term energy security and affordability amid evolving coal policy developments in Indonesia and increasing volatility of fossil fuels in the global market. Indonesia remains the Philippines’ primary source of imported coal, which is largely used for power generation. Recent policy direction by Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto, including plans to strengthen government oversight over the pricing and export of key natural resources, reflects Indonesia’s broader efforts to prioritize domestic economic and [...]
ICSC: Recurring grid alerts highlight urgent need for decentralized energy in the country
Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities PRESS RELEASE QUEZON CITY, May 20, 2026 –– The red and yellow alerts raised over the Luzon and Visayas grids over the past week highlight how outages from several large centralized coal plants can quickly strain the Philippine power system and result in power outages across interconnected grids, according to the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC). No baseload power plant should be on outage from April to June, based on the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines’ (NGCP) Grid Operating and Maintenance Plan (GOMP). However, ICSC noted that these power plants [...]
ICSC: The real risk is delay, not renewables
Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities REACTIVE EDITOR'S NOTE (07 May 2026): Amendments were made in the introduction and articles cited to reflect clarifications in this piece. QUEZON CITY, 06 May 2026 – In the midst of an energy crisis, marked by rising electricity prices and continued exposure to volatile global fuel markets—the real risk is not renewable energy, but the delay and barriers to scaling it. Recent conversations surfaced on how nuclear energy is being "eyed to contribute to the local power generation mix by 2032." In response, the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC) [...]
Northern Samar LGU pledges to build a more resilient, affordable, and sustainable energy system through renewables
Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities PRESS RELEASE QUEZON CITY, 05 May 2026 – The Provincial Government of Northern Samar declared their commitment and determination to advance a cleaner and more sustainable energy future for the province during the Renewable Energy (RE) Roadmap Scoping Workshop with the Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities (ICSC), held from April 27-30, 2026. The recent workshop is part of a series of engagements organized by ICSC following the Memorandum of Agreement with Eastern Visayas local chief executives, which aim to institutionalize participatory local energy planning, craft local RE ordinances, and mobilize innovative financing [...]