Power cut affects whole of Gibraltar caused by interruption to Gas supply; Minister speaks to GBC

A widespread power cut has affected most areas around Gibraltar this evening.

The Power Cut has been caused by an interruption to the gas supply at the North Mole Power Station.

GBC understands the power is now being restored and most areas of Gibraltar now have power.

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The government claims recently installed Battery Energy Storage System responded as designed, however, the sudden loss of generation exceeded the level of power that the BESS was able to absorb and stabilise at that moment.

The Gibraltar-wide power cut caused considerable issues, with many people having travelled to Gibraltar from across Europe for the KPMG Gaming Summit.

Many of them had arranged business dinners, including one hosted by Trade Minister Nigel Feetham, but somerestaurants have taken the decision to shut down for the evening, unable to cook food.

Bars around the rock are also full of people waiting to watch the first match of the World Cup.

The Electricity Authority says it is working to restore supply as quickly and safely as possible.

The Minister with responsibility for the Electricity Authority is at the North Mole Power Station.

She says she was therefore unable to attend the King's Birthday Parade.

The Government and the GEA say they are reviewing the circumstances surrounding the interruption to the gas supply to establish the precise cause and to ensure that any necessary follow-up action is taken.

The Authority says it apologises to members of the public and businesses for the inconvenience caused.

Meanwhile in a statement late this evening, Gas supppliers PX Limited said the power failure rose from an apparent failure of equipment, which controls the supply of liquid natural gas to the power station. 

The have apologised for the incident and say they will work to ensure it doesn't happen again.

Iain Triay-Clarence spoke to Electricity Authority Minister, Gemma Arias Vasquez.