January 21, 2015 — Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro says it successfully connected the combustion turbine plant in the town of Holyrood to the island electricity system today.

Upon synchronizing with the system, the plant was run up to 40MWs. The project team will continue testing over the next week at various loads. During this period, there may be some potential for brief power interruptions although the comany said it’s not expecting any disruptions. Hydro said it is taking all steps possible to prevent them through a safe and carefully prepared commissioning plan.

During the online testing process, the combustion turbine can be called upon to support generation in the unlikely scenario that there is a system event which requires additional power for customers. Hydro said it does not anticipate any issues meeting customer demand in the days ahead and that the existing generation fleet across the province is performing well and reserves remain strong.

Once fully commissioned, the combustion turbine will add 123.5 MW of reserve capacity to the existing generation fleet. It is considered a peaking plant and will be used for high demand and emergency periods.