The technical report also establishes a series of corrective actions aimed at strengthening the stability of the national electricity system.
SANTO DOMINGO. – The Coordinating Body of the National Interconnected Electric System (OC-SENI) reported that it will accelerate the implementation of operational improvements and corrective measures in the national electric system, after concluding the technical report on the event that occurred on February 23 that caused service interruptions in different areas of the country.
As part of the measures adopted, the agency arranged for the creation of an inter-institutional executive committee that will meet on the third Wednesday of each month to monitor corrective actions and verify their compliance within the established deadlines.
What happened?
According to the technical report, at the time of the incident the electrical system was operating within normal parameters, with 2,836.83 megawatts of synchronized generation and a supplied demand of 2,667.05 megawatts, which represented an operating reserve of 169.78 megawatts, equivalent to 6.4%.
The analysis determined that the event occurred at 10:50 a.m. due to a failure in the 138-kilovolt Hainamosa-Villa Duarte transmission line, a situation that caused variations in the system frequency and the activation of automatic protection mechanisms.
Subsequently, some generating units went offline, contributing to the voltage drop in the system. However, the report highlights that the protection and control systems installed in recent years functioned correctly, allowing the fault to be isolated and limiting the event's impact.
According to the agency, these measures facilitated the gradual recovery of the electricity service without any permanent damage to the system's assets.
Measures to strengthen the system
The technical report also establishes a series of corrective actions aimed at strengthening the stability of the national electricity system. These include the verification and adjustment of protection systems on transmission lines, the installation of differential protection in substations, and the optimization of operational controls in some generating units.
Likewise, the modernization program for the protection and operation of substations under the double bus scheme will continue, a process that has been underway for two years with the aim of increasing the resilience of the system to contingencies.
The document also recommends incorporating emerging technologies, such as battery energy storage systems, to strengthen the system's auxiliary services, especially in frequency regulation and recovery processes in the event of electrical outages.
The OC-SENI indicated that the report was prepared by a multi-sectoral team of specialists from the electricity sector, which allowed for a comprehensive analysis of the event and the definition of measures to improve the operation of the national electricity system.
Those who will make up the committee
The committee will be comprised of the Ministry of Energy and Mines of the Dominican Republic, the Superintendency of Electricity, the Coordinating Body, the Dominican Electricity Transmission Company (ETED), and the distribution companies Edenorte, Edesur, and Edeeste. Private and state-owned power generators will also participate, including the Punta Catalina Thermoelectric Power Plant and the Dominican Hydroelectric Generation Company (EGEHID).
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