China Energy Henan Branch Takes Immediate Actions to Respond to Rainstorms

Record rainstorms hit Zhengzhou, capital of central China’s Henan Province, from the night of July 19 through the morning of July 21, swamping almost all roads and paralyzing subways and ground public transportation. The west parts of the province were also affected. China Energy Henan Branch, as well as its subsidiaries, took immediate actions to activate the flood emergency response mechanism, ensuring production safety and the smooth operation of generation units. At present, the seven coal-fired power plants and eight wind farms under Henan Branch are operating smoothly. The continuous rainstorms didn’t affect the operation of its generation units, which have been generating and supplying power as scheduled.

Workers of Xingyang Coal-fired Power Co., Ltd. rush to repair a specialized railroad damaged by the rainstorms.

Xingyang Coal-fired Power Co., Ltd. is a key power and heating supplier in Zhengzhou. Rainstorms starting on the afternoon of July 19 caused all roads in its factory submerged in 20-cm-deep water. Moreover, the duct trench and circulation water pump room were also swamped, and several sections of the specialized railroad collapsed. Thanks to immediate response measures, the risks were removed in a timely manner. On the afternoon of July 20, some areas of Zhengzhou suffered a blackout due to the rainstorms. The reclaimed water supply pipeline stopped working, affecting power generation. The company immediately coordinated with relevant government departments and the Henan Electricity Power Scheduling Center, and the reclaimed water supply pipeline was restored after one and a half hours’ suspension. All employees of the company rushed to the frontline to fight the flood. Currently, all equipment in the company operates well, and generation units produce electricity as scheduled.

Workers reinforce the embankment in Jiaozuo Power Plant.

The century-old Jiaozuo Power Plant is an important power supplier in western Henan. The region was also affected by the rainstorms. At 6 a.m. on July 19, the power plant’s 2A desulfurization pulse suspension pump was powered off. A patrol check found that it was caused by inflow of water. The repairers manually opened the pump’s electric entry gate as quickly as possible. After further checking, they asked operators in the central control room to restart the pulse suspension pump, which then restored normal operation.

Technicians monitor the operation of generation units in Jiaozuo Power Plant.

Jiyuan Power Co., Ltd. is responsible for supplying heating to industrial enterprises in Jiyuan City. On the afternoon of July 20, workers screened the heating pipelines outside the factory, and placed sandbags around observation wells while pumping water out. They did their utmost to reduce the rainstorms’ impact on the heating pipelines. Mengjin Power Co., Ltd. in western Henan organized its employees to fight the flood in an orderly manner. They patrolled and checked the main transformer duct trench and rainwater wells, and worked closely with neighboring enterprises to resist the rainstorms.

Considering the surging demand for power in summertime, all power plants under China Energy Henan Branch have formulated careful plans and done every effort to fight the flood despite the dual pressures from heavy-load operation and continuous rainstorms, laying a solid foundation for the battle against the disaster by ensuring power supply.