With the completion of the test, one of the plant's gas turbines can now supply energy to Roraima, the only Brazilian state not part of the national electricity system.

The afternoon of Friday, January 28, was the date set for the reliability test carried out on one of the turbines at the Jaguatirica II project, built by Techint E&C. The test phase consists of keeping the equipment running for 96 uninterrupted hours at maximum load, also producing power for Roraima during this test, as it is the only Brazilian state not included in the national grid, known as the National Interconnected System (SIN). With a guaranteed generation of 120 megawatts (MW), the Jaguatirica II joint venture will be the main power source for the state of Roraima.

“This is one of the most important tests of the project. Required by the National Electric System Operator (ONS, in Portuguese), the turbine reliability test is what guarantees that the turbines and hence the thermoelectric plant will be able to generate energy at a commercial level,” explains Thiago de Oliveira, Project Manager.

This stage of reliability testing for the gas turbine identified as GT11 complies with the contractual criteria and requirements set by the ONS. To honor this special occasion, as the plant went online to provide power to the state as a whole, the commemorative event was attended by state governor Antonio Denarium, who remotely hit the button to start up the turbine. “Today, the first turbine of the Jaguatirica II thermoelectric plant is starting up, providing 48MW to the electricity distribution system in the State of Roraima.”

One essential piece of equipment for carrying out the reliability test is the voltage step-up transformer. “All the voltage generated in the generator, driven by the gas turbine, can be stepped up to a higher voltage thanks to this apparatus, before being sent to the Boa Vista substation, where it will be distributed throughout the state of Roraima,” said Virgílio Alves, Commissioning Engineer.

After the completion of the GT11 gas turbine test, the thermoelectric plant will continue with reliability testing for the other turbines, before becoming fully operational and able to supply energy to the State of Roraima, helping to cover 70% of the state's electricity consumption. This also means that they can begin to shut down the current diesel generation operations, with the commensurate reduction in generation costs and CO₂ emissions.