Electricity specialists seem to be converging on Mauritius since the blackout that plunged 80% of the island into darkness on Thursday night. Experts from Electricité de France have already arrived in the country yesterday to meet employees of the Central Electricity Board (CEB). This meeting is aimed at finding ways of avoiding such blackouts in the future.

During their visit, Frédéric Busin, EDF manager from Reunion Island and his engineer are to review the situation in the different departments of the CEB. They should also sign cooperation agreements regarding the technical side as well as staff-training. Finally, the managements of both companies are expected to share their knowledge, more specifically on technical questions.

After the blackouts, rumours were rife about the possibility of sabotage but both the staff of the CEB and the prime minister, Paul Bérenger, denied them. Such rumours had spread following a communiqué after the cabinet meeting recalling that ?a major power failure took place during the AGOA conference in Mauritius in 2003?. As the Small Islands Developing States conference is currently being held in Mauritius, the coincidence has led some people to jump to conclusions? But the PM said those two cases have nothing to do one with one another since there was a storm in the country during the AGOA conference, which explained the power failure at that time.

Technical problem

The general manager of the CEB asserts that the latest failure was due to a technical problem with a 66 KV trip switch on the Nicolay-Wooton line. ?The station is under high protection and there is controlled access. It would have been impossible for anyone to come and sabotage the infrastructure without jeopardising his/her own life?, Ravin Dajee commented.

He added that this problem could happen again because the demand for electricity is high and the Nicolay station plays a very important part in the supply system. But the new centrals in St Aubin and Savannah expected for 2007 should reduce such problems in the future.

According to trade unionist, Jack Bizlall, the power failure was due to several reasons: ?There was an overheating of the system as well as a delay in the installation of new turbines but there was also a human factor.? However, he didn?t give much detail about the latter.

Everyone has his/her own explanation for the problem at the moment. But the government will call upon a company from South Africa or India to shed some light on what happened. They should also explain why the impact of the failure was so great and should recommend safety measures.