The KESC's two transmission lines connecting city to the Kanupp once again tripped just after 54 hours of their restoration, resulting in complete suspension of power supply to the metropolis.
The supply of about 85 MW from Kanupp had been disconnected since January 14, 2008 following the tripping of the same high-tension transmission lines and was restored by the Karachi Electric Supply Company on February 16 after 33 days.
But both the lines once again tripped one after another on Tuesday resulting another shut down of the nuclear power generating unit and the disconnection of the supply, sources maintained.
It is worth mentioning here that these two transmission lines are the only source through which the Kanupp supplies about 80-90 MW to the KESC to cater power demands of the city. The tripping of both the high-tension transmission lines just after 54 hours of their rehabilitation that remained underway for more than one month has raised several questions over the quality of the work of the KESC's engineering department, sources said.
Sources also revealed that the it was the third time since January 01, 2008 that Kanupp has suffered shut down due to the tripping of the KESC's transmission lines. While the nuclear power station suffered 11 shutdowns during 2007 due to transients or failure of theses transmission lines. Business Recorder also learnt that the Kanupp has recorded its protest and questioned the KESC to clarify its stance over the repeated tripping of high-tension lines, terming the situation dangerous for the nuclear power generator.
Several areas of the city were deprived of the electricity for about 4-6 hours on Tuesday, as the difference between the city's power demand and supply has reached up to 200 MW following the suspension of the supply from Kanupp and increase in temperature, sources added.