Why Energy Secretary Garin says Pax Silica is ‘too dangerous’ to plug into grid

How much electricity is 3 gigawatts? Enough to give Energy Secretary Sharon Garin pause.

Pax Silica, the planned artificial intelligence, semiconductor, and advanced manufacturing hub in New Clark City, could eventually require 3,000 megawatts.

That’s about 19% of Luzon’s projected 2026 peak demand and nearly equivalent to the entire Visayas grid. It’s also close to the combined capacity of five 620-MW Bataan Nuclear Power Plants, the Philippines’ mothballed nuclear plant that never produced commercial electricity.

Or, as Garin put it: “Malaki siya. Malaki.” (It’s big. Big.)

In an exclusive interview with Rappler, Garin made clear that Pax Silica cannot simply plug its full demand into the Luzon grid without exposing households and businesses to serious risk.