EFL defends Labasa week-day power shutdown

A round 200 workers of Pinto Industries Pte Limited could be forced to stay home today (Thursday) as a planned Energy Fiji Limited (EFL) power shut­ down affects parts of Labasa.

This follows an update from Energy Fiji Limited (EFL) that several parts of Labasa will be without power.

The shutdown will affect the Vakamasisuasua Industri­al Zone, Pinto Mechanical Garage, Pinto Plastic Factory, Pinto Industries Ltd, Pinto Roof Smart and other areas in Labasa, with several businesses expected to be disrupted.

Pinto Industries Pte Limited Corporate Manager Ravin Kumar said the company received notice of the planned shutdown by email yesterday (Wednesday).

"Our construction is going to be affected, manufacturing division, everything will be closed if EFL does not revise," Mr Kumar said.

He said the company had backup generators, but they were not sufficient to power the entire factory and keep op­erations running.

Mr Kumar said the company strongly opposed the pro­posed shutdown because of its impact on workers and business operations.

He said around 200 workers could be forced to stay home because weekend overtime approval had not been granted to EFL.

"Our concern is simple: who will pay the workers' wages if they are unable to work through?" he said.

Mr Kumar said the shutdown would affect not only Pinto Industries but other businesses operating within the in­dustrial zone.

He urged EFL and relevant authorities to urgently review the planned shutdown and consider the impact on busi­nesses and workers.

The planned power interruption is expected to affect busi­ness operations across parts of Labasa today.

EFL response

EFL said the planned outage has been scheduled on a weekday to allow for the efficient deployment of its crews, contractors, equipment and operational resources needed to safely complete the works.

EFL said carrying out the maintenance during normal operational periods would help optimise resource avail­ability, minimise costs and ensure the work was completed efficiently and within the shortest possible timeframe.

While acknowledging that the planned outage may incon­venience customers and businesses, EFL said the inter­ruption was necessary to carry out essential maintenance aimed at improving the long-term reliability, safety and resilience of the electricity network.

The planned interruption will allow EFL crews and con­tractors to undertake vegetation management works at several locations across Labasa.

The work involves cutting and removing trees and vegeta­tion growing close to EFL power lines, which EFL said had contributed to transient faults, network disturbances and power supply interruptions.

EFL said trees and branches coming into contact with power lines could cause faults, damage network infrastruc­ture and result in unplanned outages affecting customers for extended periods.

The importance of the work was recently highlighted fol­lowing an incident in Vunivau where a fallen coconut tree damaged power line infrastructure, including conductors and crossarms, causing power disruptions and additional costs and inconvenience to customers.

EFL said completing the work through a controlled and planned outage would reduce the risk of future faults and un­planned outages while ensuring the safety of the public and maintenance personnel.

The outage is scheduled from 7.45am to 5pm today, weather permitting, and will affect customers across several parts of Labasa, including the Vakamasisuasua Industrial Zone, part of Ritova Street, Waikovu Subdivision, Naseakula Village, Nalovolailai, Napoidi, Delailabasa, Western Wreckers Road, Covata Housing, Tuatua, Lajonia, Rara Housing, Tovata, Abua, Wailevu, Naseakula Road corridor and surrounding areas.

EFL said the interruption would also affect commercial, in­dustrial and community facilities, including manufacturing and distribution businesses, service stations, schools, places of worship, telecommunications infrastructure, water and wastewater facilities, transport operators and retail business­es.

EFL chief executive officer Fatiaki Gibson said vegetation management was one of the most important preventative maintenance activities undertaken by the company.

"Vegetation management is one of the most important pre­ventative maintenance activities undertaken by EFL," he said.

"By removing trees and branches that pose a risk to power lines, we can significantly reduce network faults, improve reliability and help prevent extended unplanned outages for customers.

"Recent incidents in the North have highlighted the impor­tance of this work in protecting both public safety and elec­tricity infrastructure."

EFL also reminded members of the public to treat all power lines as live at all times and maintain a safe distance from fall­en or damaged lines.