Lahore: National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC) is working on a pilot project to ensure smooth power evacuation, transmission and despatch to the 132kV distribution and onward supply to consumers, a news source reported. To achieve the task, NTDC has started washing its 500kV and 220kV transmission lines.
The project aims to avert any major breakdown as pollutants – which emerge as a result of fuel emissions, industrial smoke, and foggy weather – reduce the lines’ insulation level. NTDC would also wash lines, insulators, towers, discs and conductors.
Several NTDC teams have already worked on lines passing in Multan, Muzaffargarh, Rajanpur, Guddu, Jaranwala Road, Sargodha, Nishatabad, Jhang, Rawat, Nokhar, New Lahore, ISPR (Sangjani), Mansehra, Mandi Bahauddin, Sheikhupura and Islamabad.
NTDC Managing Director Zafar Iqbal said that decreasing insulation level of the 500kV double circuit Port Qasim transmission line caused occasional tripping and interruption of power transmission and supply to distribution system.
He added that NTDC teams would start replacing normal insulators with RTV (room temperature vulcanising) coated insulators on first 10-km stretch of towers from December 26. He added that the coating would help prevent pollutants from sticking to insulator surface.
