TGK-14 Director Addresses Chita TPP-1 Accident Questions

Andrey Chebykin, director of the Chita Generation branch of PJSC TGK-14 (Territorial Generating Company No. 14), told a correspondent of Chita.Ru that the test of the new turbogenerator at TPP-1, after which a large-scale blackout occurred in the city, was not deliberately conducted at night but continued throughout almost the entire day of 4 February. He also provided more details about the causes of the failure and further work.

«We commissioned this generator after a major reconstruction involving replacement of the excitation generator of the current conductors. Before putting it into operation, it is necessary to conduct tests. All installation work was completed, and we began them. The tests take quite a long time: measurements are taken at different load modes. For example, at one load the tests last about four hours, then the load increases, and the experiments continue for another two to four hours. The tests started during the day and continued at night,» the director explained.

The abundant thick «smoke» that emanated from the TPP and was observed by residents was actually steam.

«There was no smoke, no fire. This is steam that must be released when turbines are shut down. It came out through safety valves — this is a completely normal phenomenon. Simply at night under lighting it could look like smoke,» said Chebykin.

The new generator that was being tested was not damaged. The cause of the incident was the destruction of a surge arrester — that is, a failure of the protective device that absorbs sudden voltage surges and thereby protects the main equipment. However, a special commission will determine what exactly led to its damage.

«The new generator is fine, no replacement is needed. The damage was sustained by the equipment that performs the protective function to prevent the generator from being affected. A commission has been created to investigate a first-degree technological violation. Conclusions will be drawn based on the results. Now it is necessary to restore the equipment damaged during the tests, after which a decision will be made on the timing for continuing the tests,» concluded Andrey Chebykin.

The regional prosecutor«s office has already launched an investigation into the accident. According to information from emergency services and government officials, it was resolved within a few hours.

On the night of 5 February, starting from about 00:15, a significant part of Chita was left without power. The blackouts affected the area from the city center to the SNT (gardening non-profit) beyond Smolenka and Ugdan. Some residents also reported a drop in temperature in their heating radiators. Witnesses sent videos of thick smoke pouring from the Chita TPP. We also filmed this smoke up close at the scene.

At night, the governor of Zabaykalsky Krai, Alexander Osipov, held an operational meeting with the management of Chita TPP-1 and sent Deputy Chairman of the Government Alexei Goncharov and First Vice-Governor of the Krai Alexander Kostenko to the site.