Malfunction affecting generator triggered Rock-wide blackout

GibElec said a Gibraltar-wide blackout on Thursday was caused by a malfunction affecting one of its generators that led to a drop in voltage.

The electricity authority made the announcement after concluding an investigation following the power cut.

“The results of said investigation point to a malfunction in a pilot oil injector module on generating set no.5, which resulted in the drop in voltage, causing the affected generating set to power down,” it said in a statement.

“The other operational generating set at the time was unable to cope with the sudden additional load of approximately 9 MW, and consequently also powered down to protect itself from overloading, causing a widespread power outage.”

“The affected generating set will remain offline whilst repair works are undertaken on the respective module.”

GibElec apologised for the incident and thanked customers for their support.