Putting the power into Kusile
As the sun rises over the Kusile Power Station site in Mpumalanga, the steam turbine construction team carefully inspects the new turbines being installed. With winter looming, the site is cold and dark in the early hours, however it is already alive with a flurry of activity.
© Hywit Dimyadi 123RF.com
Each day starts with a toolbox tour where the previous day's work is inspected and decisions are made about the day ahead. "Every day is different," says Roland Ester, centreline manager Kusile Power Plant, GE Power. "Not one day is the same as we regularly find ourselves facing challenges and issues that we need to solve."
Ester and his team travel the world working on some of GE's biggest steam turbine installation projects. Before taking charge at Kusile, he was based in Saudi Arabia, developing a power plant to help the kingdom meet its growing energy needs. The Middle Eastern country faces extremely hot summers, so the power technologies installed needed to withstand high temperatures.
The team moved to Kusile to provide technical support at the site, and are responsible for the installation of advanced technology turbines that will power the station. Ester explains that while Saudi Arabia might have higher temperatures than South Africa, similar turbines are being installed at Kusile, which also experiences hot summers.
Source: allAfrica
Source: allAfrica
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