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Celec analyzes whether lightning in Coca Codo Sinclair area caused blackouts
Posted On 10 Oct 2018
Ecuadornews:
The Coca Codo Sinclair Hydroelectric Power Plant dispatches electric power with security restrictions, according to a statement issued by the Ecuadorian Electric Corporation, after the blackouts suffered in several cities in Ecuador between Monday and Tuesday.
The general manager of the Corporation, Gonzalo Uquillas Vallejo, visited the plant as well as the 500 kV Transmission System, where three disconnections were recorded between Monday and today. In a statement, Celec reported that strong electric shocks that were recorded on Monday afternoon in the area of the Coca Codo Sinclair Hydroelectric Power Station detonated, in principle, these problems in the system.
Until midday of this Tuesday, the hydroelectric power station worked with five of the eight units. “We are not going to declare full availability and full capacity of the plant and lines to identify and resolve this situation definitively,” said Uquillas, who chairs the Technical Committee.
He explained that in order to find the origin of the registered disconnections, it is necessary to evaluate the quality of the insulating gas (SF6) of the substation of the plant, for the effect teams of technicians of Celec Transelectric and specialized companies will do the relevant tests.
While reviewing the eight kilometers of the Coca Codo Sinclair – San Rafael transmission line to 500 thousand volts to detect a possible cause of the disconnection, Celec has requested the National Electricity Operator (Cencae) to enter operation on Wednesday, October 10 one of the generation units of the Minas San Francisco plant (located between the provinces of Azuay and El Oro) to ensure the electricity supply.
At least three blackouts caused discomfort in citizens of several provinces on Monday. (I)
