Unit one at Koeberg power station in the Western Cape was successfully returned to service on Wednesday after being out of commission for the past five months for repairs.
The generator was damaged in December 2005, resulting in both the rotor and stator requiring repair.
The stator was repaired on site at Koeberg, while a replacement rotor was obtained from the French utility, EdF. The stator rewind and the rotor inspection and testing were completed in the last half of April 2006. The mechanical re-assembly of the generator was completed by the beginning of May. A number of tests, including rotor alignment, were successfully conducted.
The start-up of the reactor of Koeberg unit one commenced last Thursday, May 11, and reached 6% power level the following day, at which stage steam was available for a further round of tests on the repaired generator. In accordance with standard procedures, various parameters were checked during the start-up process to ensure they are within specification. At 2pm, the unit was sending out 270MW.
Eskom said the power level will continue to be increased, and pending all parameters remaining within specification, Koeberg unit one is expected to be operating at full power within the fourth week of May 2006, as indicated in the Integrated Recovery Plan.
Koeberg unit two, however, will be shut down on 22 May, as scheduled, for its refuelling and maintenance outage. This outage will take place through the rest of May, June and most of July.
“The projections of electricity demand indicate that a shortfall of up to 400MW may be experienced in the Western Cape during this period. Demand-side management measures such as the issuing of five-million compact fluorescent lights to the Western Cape and the swapping out of two-plate electric stoves for two-plate gas stoves, and dynamic market-participation programmes, are being rolled out to mitigate this shortage.
“This programme is progressing well and to date minimal load-shedding has had to take place,” said Eskom chief executive Thulani Gcabashe. — I-Net Bridge