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KARACHI, May 24: The following is the chronology of the recent major power breakdowns:
• March 21: A prolonged power breakdown in Liaquatabad, Nazimabad, and adjoining localities as 132KV high-tension underground cable is damaged at two places during the construction work of underpass at Gharibabad.
• April 4: Two power-generating units of KESC cease to work creating a shortage of 225MW in the city. Loadshedding is carried out in various localities on rotation.
---- The Bin Qasim unit No: 6 trips after its boiler leaks and the oil spills over.
---- A technical fault developed in the Korangi Thermal Unit that caused further shortfall of 25MW.
• April 18: A vast area of the city plunges into darkness after a power shortage of almost 200MW as five main cables are damaged due to development work near National Stadium.
• April 23: Many areas of the city plunge into darkness in the small hours after two of the underground high-tension power cables of 132KV each are again severed during the development work in Liaquatabad and Shershah.
• April 25: A number of localities in the city are deprived of the electricity twice in the morning and at night after one of the main circuits of the KESC near Bin Qasim Power Station trips.
• April 26: A long power breakdown after an extra high-tension line of 220KV carrying electricity from Bin Qasim Power Station snaps at 9pm, and repaired the next day at around 9:30pm.
• April 27: The extra high-tension line of 220KV snaps again at 10pm and is repaired the next day.
• May 8: Power breakdown followed by loadshedding after one of the six power generating units in Bin Qasim Power Station comes to a standstill causing shortage of 200MW.
• May 10: An extra high-tension line of 132KV develops fault causing breakdown in Liaquatabad, parts of Nazimabad and Federal B Area.
• May 14: Most parts of the city including Gizri, Clifton, Defence, Queen's Road, and Elander Road grids, plunge into darkness in the small hours after a current transformer catchest fire at Gizri grid station.
• May 15: KESC shuts down its one of the six power generating units at Bin Qasim Power Plant after the leakage of hydrogen gas resorting to loadshedding across the city.
• May 18: An overhead extra high-tension line of 132KV in North Nazimabad develops fault in the morning suspending power supply to a vast portion of the city. High-tension line carries power from Haroonabad grid station in SITE to Liaquatabad grid station.
• May 22: A power-generating unit of the Korangi Thermal Power Station ceases to work in the morning creating power shortage of up to 100MW and forcing KESC to resort to loadshedding across the city.
• May 24: Queen's Road grid station catches fire in the morning suspending supply to various localities connected to Lalazar, Elander Road, Clifton, Defence, Gizri, Garden, Old Town, and Jacoblines grid stations. Important government offices, governor house and chief minister house remain without electricity for hours. The fire erupted at around 9:38am and caused tripping of the 220KV circuit in Bin Qasim Power Station which led to suspension of supply.—A.S.
