NGCP-China partnership in Senate crosshair

MANILA - Senators are eyeing a review of the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines’ (NGCP) franchise following a series of power outages recorded in Visayas and other areas in the country.

Senator Grace Poe, chairperson of the Senate Committee on Public Services, said her panel is now open to reviewing the NGCP franchise, considering the importance of its service to the critical need of Filipinos. “The recurring power outages being experienced by millions of households amid the scorching months should not be the norm,” Poe said.

Even Senator JV Ejercito, said a review of NGCP franchise is really necessary given its partnership with the State Grid Corporation of China, which he said is not really advisable given the Philippines’ ongoing dispute with Beijing over the West Philippine Sea. “Nakakabahala na ang NGCP malaking porsyento, 40 percent is already owned by a Chinese entity owned by the Chinese government,” he said.

State Grid Corporation of China, even if it only holds 40 percent of shares in the NGCP, is actually controlling the NGCP’s operations, Ejercito said, quoting an unnamed sources.

A hearing on the NGCP franchise can either be conducted by the Senate and the House of Representatives, he said.

According to Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva, a review on the NGCP franchise “makes a lot of sense given the increasing occurrence of power interruptions in the country.”

Senator Sherwin Gatchalian, vice chairman of the Senate Committee on Energy, also sought an investigation of the NGCP performance. “The national grid of the electric power industry is the sole backbone for the transmission of electricity throughout the country... by virtue of its franchise, NGCP is bound to operate and maintain the transmission system, grid and related facilities at all times in accordance with industry standards,” he said.

In 2018, the Senate also investigated the NGCP-China partnership, but were barred from entering the NGCP facilities. 

Senator Risa Hontiveros renewed her calls for the government to regain its control of the NGCP to ensure the country’s protection.

Early this year, the National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA) signed an agreement with the NGCP to protect the Philippines against any attacks in cyberspace, particularly on energy infrastructure.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr even witnessed the signing of the memorandum of understanding between NICA and NGCP on March 13 in Malacanang Palace. “Since the NGCP is in charge of a very critical aspect of the daily lives of Filipinos, when it comes to war strategy, “we do – we conduct our wars in the same manner that we conduct our business,” Marcos said.

He even raised the parallelism between the previous global wars and industrial development at the time with the current advancements in business through cyberspace, adding, “And that is why we are continuing to shore up our defenses when it comes to cyber-security.”

 “And since NGCP is a critical part of our security, of our ability to continue to function as a society, then this is an important day because now we have made more robust the defenses against any possible attacks on our power systems,” Marcos said.

Marcos said the signing of the memorandum is a very good step as the country develops its cyber systems to secure collected data and information and prevent external actors from using them against the Philippines.

Under the agreement, NICA is tasked with integrating collected intelligence information from various government instrumentality, make an analysis, assess the data, and recommend actions in safeguarding NGCP’s transmission assets.

The NGCP, on the other hand, can share vital information on energy-related security issues and provide technical advice to the NICA. Through the memorandum, NICA commits to supply the NGCP with intelligence information to support the protection of power transmission assets that NGCP operates and maintains across the country, while it commits to provide technical assistance to NICA to support and strengthen its cyber-security capability.

The NGCP is a privately owned corporation in charge of operating, maintaining, and developing the country’s state-owned power grid, an interconnected system that transmits gigawatts of power in thousands of volts from generators to consumers. 

On the other hand, NICA is the primary intelligence gathering and analysis arm of the government carrying out overt, covert, and clandestine intelligence activities. NICA directs, coordinates, and integrates all government activities involving national intelligence and serves as the focal point for the preparation of intelligence data of local and foreign situations which serve as inputs and guide to the day-to-day decision and policy-making functions of the President as well as other entities. 

It was unclear whether Marcos or NICA were aware that China controls four of the ten NGCP board seats and represented by Zhu Guangchao, the Vice Chief Engineer and Director General of International Cooperation Department of the SGCC; Shan Shewu, Director General of the Philippine Office of SGCC and Board member of State Grid International Development; Liu Ming, the SGCC Chief Representative of China's Africa Office; and Liu Xinhua, an engineer with a master's degree and a topnotcher in the CPA Board Examination in China. (Sherrie Ann Torres / ABS-CBN News and Mindanao Examiner)