The new unit in Elektrėnai was disconnected from the grid at around 4 AM due to a failure at the a nearby 330-kilovolt switchyard, Lietuvos Energija said, adding that the current transformer, owned by the project contractor, Spain's Iberdrola, will be replaced and that the malfunction will be cleared as soon as possible.
A commission of Lietuvos Energija's specialists will investigate the malfunctioning and assess what damage it has done and what impact it will have on the project's implementation, the company's spokeswoman, Jūratė Kavaliauskaitė, told BNS.
The new 445-megawatt unit was for the first time hooked up to the national transmission grid and started producing electricity last Friday.
The new unit is expected to start normal operation next autumn. It will replace Units No. 3 and 4 of Lietuvos Elektrinė (Lithuanian power Plant), which were built 40 to 50 years ago, and will use around 30 percent less gas.
The block is estimated to cost around 353.6 million euros. The construction is being financed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Lietuvos Energija itself, and a consortium of Swedbank, SEB Bankas, DnB Nord, Nordea Bank Lietuva and Danske. The banks have loaned 81.4 million euros.
