DOST: Utilize AI to avert power outages

Enrico Paringit —FROM INSTAGRAM OF DOST-PCIEERD

Equipping the energy sector with advanced technologies, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), can help prevent widespread power outages, a government official said on Friday.

This is according to Enrico Paringit, executive director of the Philippine Council for Industry, Energy and Emerging Technology Research and Development under the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCIEERD).

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During his talk at the AI Horizons PH ’24 forum, he said the agency has been supportive of research topics that could “optimize the dispatch of power in grid systems to optimize energy resources.”

Paringit also said that with AI, a grid or transmission system operator can quickly track down unavailable lines or facilities and the cause of interruption, which could give energy players more time to strategize or reroute electricity.

He said AI has also the capacity to determine possible outages even before storms could hit the country.

“The prospect is that we should have capabilities for anticipating possible problems, not only in power but also in water,” Paringit added.

Service interruptions

The Philippines deals with an average of 20 typhoons every year, with the most recent ones becoming ever stronger, causing massive flooding and landslides in different parts of the country. During heavy rains and strong winds, consumers experience electricity and water service interruptions for hours, with some lasting for days or weeks.

Just this week, the country has suffered from a trail of destruction due to Severe Tropical Storm “Kristine.”

On Friday noon, the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines, the operator of the country’s transmission system, said four more lines in Luzon remained unavailable.

Power distributor Manila Electric Co. also said more than 360,000 consumers across its franchise areas were still affected by power outages.

Meanwhile, Paringit said the DOST and the Department of Energy were preparing to hold an AI forum on power energy applications, poised within the year.