China can turn off the Philippine national power grid, officials say

Engineers in China could plunge the country into darkness using a remote operating system supplied by a firm based in Nanjing

Senators demand an investigation into the national security implications, but official says a similar arrangement exists in Kenya, Indonesia and Thailand

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Workers erect a reinforcement grid of iron bars for a concrete wall of a power substation in Manila. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:58pm, 20 Nov 2019Updated: 1:39pm, 6 Dec 2019

Philippine senators have called for an investigation into the security implications of China’s part ownership of the national energy grid after officials said engineers in Beijing could plunge the entire country into darkness with the flick of a switch.

National Transmission Corporation (TransCo) president Melvin Matibag confirmed there was a “possibility” of such a scenario during deliberations in the Senate on Tuesday over the government budget for 2020.

The State Grid Corporation of China holds a 40 per cent stake in the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP), a private consortium which bagged the franchise in 2009 to run the power lines.

TransCo previously ran the system and now has oversight over NGCP, but Matibag told senators that in reality, its “access was limited”.

The State Grid Corporation of China holds a 40 per cent stake in the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines. Photo: Xinhua

Opposition Liberal Party senator Risa Hontiveros first raised questions over the extent of Beijing’s control given the continuing territorial conflict between the two countries in the South China Sea.

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