MANILA - The Philippines' power grid operator said Wednesday the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak is affecting some of its projects as vendors and manufacturers put on hold deliveries of critical equipment.

The National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP) said those affected include several projects that aim to address low voltage in grids across different parts of the country.

Among the affected projects are the Mindanao-Visayas Interconnection, Western Luzon 500kV Backbone, Mindanao 230kV Backbone, and the San Jose-Quezon 230kV transmission line, the NGCP said.

"The company has put in place a contingency plan, which includes the use of existing NGCP equipment in stock and resort to other suppliers not affected by COVID-19, to mitigate further the impact of the disease on project deadlines and its overall effect on power transmission operations," the company said.

NGCP said it has also implemented contingency measures to minimize the effect of COVID-19 on its workforce.

The company has canceled official travel to affected countries and non-essential large events, issued protocols on employees returning from abroad, set up stricter procedures on the entry of guests, and pushed the use of video conferencing and other online communication as an alternative to face-to-face meetings.

NGCP is a Filipino-Chinese consortium made up of Monte Oro Grid Resources Corporation, Calaca High Power Corporation, and the State Grid Corporation of China.