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Khoms power plant raises capacity after maintenance: GECOL

The second unit of Khoms power plant went into operation on Sunday after maintenance work was completed by the company’s engineers, the General Electricity Company of Libya (GECOL) announced.

As this unit begins to function, the plant will contribute a generation capacity of 100 megawatts to the national grid, GECOL said, adding that the plant’s fourth unit is expected to resume operation on Monday after completing its maintenance.

The plant is located in the port city of Khoms, about 120 kilometers away from the capital Tripoli.

The Tripoli-based company said this will enhance the efficiency of electric supply to citizens, and reduce the hours of load shedding.

In January 2019, the GECOL announced raising the capacity of the national electricity grid to about 6,050 megawatts for the first time.

It praised the efforts of the company’s engineers and technicians in different departments who were able to raise the production capacity through the maintenance of a number of existing production units without the need to launch new ones.

Since the middle of July 2018, western Libya has had only intermittent power, with some areas suffering multiple cuts a day, some lasting as long as nine hours.

Among the issues facing GECOL is the shortage of fuel supply needed to operate the power plants, besides looting and military clashes near the power stations.

Several areas in Tripoli have lost access to power since April as ongoing fighting in the capital hit key overhead power cables, the general electricity authority said.

Clashes have erupted in early April between armed groups allied with the internationally recognized Government of National Accord (GNA) and the Libyan National Army.

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