Management style needs to be changed in Kyrgyzstan’s energy sector
BISHKEK (TCA) — Despite an expensive modernization, an accident occurred at the Bishkek thermal power plant last Friday. As a result, most of the city residents remained without heating when the air temperature outside was minus 20 degrees Celsius and below, including hospitals and schools. Schoolchildren are on an unplanned vacation until February 3. Bishkek Mayor Albek Ibraimov promised the citizens that all the malfunctions would be eliminated on Saturday by 10 pm, but the promises did not come true. People, trying to keep warm in cold apartments, used electric heaters and gas burners. The power grid overloaded and many homes suffered from blackouts. Daily electricity consumption in Kyrgyzstan reached a record high on January 29, amounting to 70.34 million kWh, the National Electric Network of Kyrgyzstan JSC which owns the Bishkek TPP reported. Over the past three days, natural gas consumption in Bishkek has increased by 40 percent. Only on January 30, Bishkek residents finally began to receive heat. On January 31, the temperature in the heating network has risen slightly. To warm up homes and apartments takes time, the National Energy Holding said. Not only journalists, but also city residents raised questions about the modernization of the Bishkek TPP, which the authorities announced among key elements of energy independence. "The completion of the project is among the achievements to improve the reliability of providing high-quality electricity and heat supply to Bishkek population," the National Energy Holding said last year. Accident at Bishkek Thermal Power Plant On January 26, the workload was reduced from 340 MW to 154 MW at the Bishkek TPP due to “the temporary failure of the feeding water supply equipment for old boiler units," the Electric Stations said. The accident started at the chemical workshop because of a malfunction of the pump supplying water to the boiler units. The pumps were included in the modernization project, but their reconstruction has not yet been carried out. Later, one of the boilers went out of operation, Bishkek TPP Director Omurkul uulu Nurlan said at a press conference on January 29. Ten boilers out of the existing 18 and five turbine units out of the nine existing ones are now operating, the TPP management said on January 30. On January 30, Deputy Prime Minister Askarbek Shadiev, who is in charge of the fuel and energy sector, on behalf of the Government apologized to the Bishkek residents for the inconvenience caused. The Prosecutor General's Office has initiated a criminal investigation on negligence charges and a government commission will investigate the causes of the power plant’s failure. Prime Minister Sapar Isakov recommended the National Energy Holding to fire First Deputy General Director of the Electric Stations JSC Berdibek Borkoyev and Bishkek TPP Director Omurkul uulu Nurlan. Parliament deputies demand to set up a commission to investigate the modernization of the Bishkek TPP by the Chinese company ТВЕА and the use of $386 million spent for the modernization. Background The modernization of the Bishkek TPP, which has been operating since 1961,...
