More power blackouts expected in Sarawak
Outage may recur until power line is completed
KUCHING: Despite its many hydrodams supplying power, Sarawak suffered power outage twice within a nine-hour period over the weekend.
The first was at 6.38pm on Saturday and then again at 3.30am yesterday.
Sarawak Energy, in a statement, said the first outage that affected Sibu, parts of Mukah and 30% of Kuching, was caused by a double circuit tripping at the 275kV KemenaSelangau line, causing a system split.
This was suspected to have been caused by heavy lightning activity in the area, said Sarawak Energy group chief operating officer Lu Yew Hung.
He said Sarawak Energy’s system defence scheme activated immediately and Kuching was successfully isolated to minimise the number of customers affected, with full restoration at 6.14am.
Lu said this was a separate incident from the tripping at the Oya-Selangau 275kV transmission lines on Saturday evening, adding that Sarawak Energy was investigating the cause of the two outages.
He said the risk of incidents like these would continue until the completion of the 500kV second transmission line.
Potentially two to three major outages could happen in a year until critical parts of the project are completed.
According to Lu, the 500kV transmission line would provide a second backbone transmission, preventing major blackouts in the event of a double circuit trip as in November 2015 and January 2016.
“With two parallel transmission backbones, power supply will continue from our major generation power plants concentrated in the north such as Bakun and Murum HEPs to customers in Sarawak, particularly in the more densely populated southern region, should the lines trip,” he said.
In Sibu, Second Finance Minister Datuk Seri Wong Soon Koh, in expressing his dismay at the two blackouts, said the incidents would project a negative image of the state to foreign visitors.
“I am very disappointed as there have been many blackouts which lasted for a long period of time. We need to overcome this,” he said.
On Saturday evening, Wong officiated the JCI Ten Outstanding Young Malaysian Award, which was delayed by more than an hour due to the blackout.
The Borneo Talent Award grand finale on the same evening was also affected. Both functions finished at midnight.
Power was restored progressively in Kuching, Sri Aman, Betong and Saratok and those in the central region including Sibu, Bintangor, Song, Kapit, Julau, Pakan, Sarikei and Tanjung Manis.