Diesel leak sparks fire at Hwange Power Station in Zimbabwe

• 3 years ago (2021-02-11)
• David Flin

Africa 303 Gas engine plant 60 Oil 17

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A diesel leak sparked a fire outbreak that disrupted power generation at Zimbabwe’s Hwange Power station on 10 February, leading to unscheduled load shedding.

Sydney Gata, Executive Chairman of ZESA Holdings, said that fire crews battled the blaze for 40 minutes. He said: “The fire broke out in the Unit 1 boiler as a result of a leak in the diesel supply line and lasted for about 40 minutes. There were no casualties arising from the fire. Although we lost 140 MW leading to load shedding between 1730 hrs and 2030 hrs due to suspension of load on units 2 and 5, we are in the process of firing the two units to restore power supply to the national grid.” He said that regular power supply will resume of 11 February.

Combined, the units at Hwange Power Station generate 320 MW.