System Power Outages
Author: Clare Duffy, ESBI, Ireland
Analysis of system power outages can help us learn and avoiding similar events in the future. If you have information on any blackouts, please e-mail to editor@pacw.org.
19 February 2010, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
A drop in output from the nation’s largest plant, AES-Andres, caused a large outage in Santo Domingo and surrounding areas. According to the local regulatory agency Electricity Superintendence, output at the plant fell from 292 to 219 megawatts. This drop, combined with lower-than-normal generation from the hydroelectric dams in the region, caused a deficit of more than 500 MW. Currently 25 of the nation’s 38 stations have been taken off line due to seasonal droughts. One official also noted that the delay of a tanker laden with fuel had caused several of the remaining plants to halt or slow generation.
1 March 2010, Manila, Philippines
The capital suffered a major blackout as a drought-induced power crisis deepened across the nation. The Manila Electric Company, which serves the city’s 12 million residents, said it was forced to implement two-hour rotating power outages across the capital city and surrounding provinces to help address the energy shortfall. The National Grid Corporation, which operates the country’s power grid, said the nation has been experiencing a number of power problems, including a lack of rainfall and infrastructure problems that have temporarily shut down two power plants in the south..
14 March 2010, Santiago, Chile:
A major transformer failed in southern Chile shortly before 10 p.m. local time, causing a failure of the Central Interconnected System. The outage left approximately 15 million people, which is equivalent to 90% of the nation’s population, without power. Chile's National Emergency Office (Onemi) said there was a technical failure of the central electrical system and that it may take them several months to return the system to normal, due to the fragility of its networks after the massive earthquake that struck the nation on February 27. The matter is being investigated, however officials were quick to claim that the outage was not directly related to damage from the quake.
22 March 2010, Valletta, Malta
A nation-wide blackout hit the Maltese Islands after demand unexpectedly spiked to more than double the available reserve capacity of 5 MW. An official with Enemalta claimed that it was not caused by a technical fault, but rather that a turbine on standby at the Marsa power station was unable to automatically synchronize with other backup measures. Power was restored to the areas around the International airport and Freeport within the hour, however other areas had to wait as long as 5 hours before electricity was restored.
1 April 2010, Siargao City, Philippines
The nation’s top surfing destination, the Siargao islands, has been suffering through a prolonged outage after an underwater power cable was apparently damaged. Siargao Island Electric Cooperative (SIARELCO) officials said that divers were dispatched to the area to determine the extent of the damage to the 9.32-kilometer underwater power line, however it may take several months before the power supply to the islands is restored to normal.
9 April 2010, Lahore, Pakistan
Power outages began across the area as the Pakistan Electric Power Company (PEPCO) struggled to deal with protracted and unannounced load shedding. Small businesses and industrial operations have been crippled as the electricity shortfall reached 5000-MW. Some citizens have taken to the streets to protest the long outages, which in some areas have lasted 16 hours a day. A spokesman for PEPCO said an additional 1000 MW would soon be added from various power plants that had been shut down recently, and that new plants scheduled to open in June or July would lower the power deficit to 2000 MW.
11 April 2010, Niamey, Niger
Power was cut in the capital city and across large parts of western Niger, with officials scrambling to find the cause. The state power company Nigelec suspected a technical problem along the 264-km transmission line coming from neighboring Nigeria, which brings Niger nearly 90 percent of its electricity supply.
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