One Worker Dead In New Caledonia Power Plant Blast

An explosion rocked a power plant supplying electricity for a metals processing site in France's Pacific territory of New Caledonia Monday, killing one employee, its operator said

Noumea, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 10th May, 2021 ) :An explosion rocked a power plant supplying electricity for a metals processing site in France's Pacific territory of New Caledonia Monday, killing one employee, its operator said.

Investigations are underway to determine the cause of the blast in the capital Noumea, which occurred during testing to bring a boiler back online after maintenance work.

"All technical precautions have been taken to secure the site," Nicolas de Cointet, operations director at the Enercal plant, told a press conference.

Environmental activists have long called for a shutdown of the 50-year-old plant because of pollution risks but work on a modern facility has repeatedly been pushed back, and is now slated to begin by 2024.

It supplies power to Societe Le Nickel, a subsidiary of the French mining group Eramet that is the largest private-sector employer in New Caledonia.