Residents of Pavlodar were alarmed by the appearance of black smoke rising from the city's northern industrial zone. Eyewitnesses filmed the incident and posted the footage on social media, reports infohub.kz.
Pavlodarenergo JSC promptly responded to the incident and clarified the situation. According to the company, the heating and power plant No. 2 (TPP-2) was firing up reserve boiler units using fuel oil, which temporarily changes the color of the smoke coming out of the chimney.
"At Pavlodar TPP-2, a reserve boiler unit was being fired up. The firing of boiler units is carried out using start-up fuel (fuel oil) in accordance with the approved technological regulations, which temporarily changes the color of the flue gas exiting the chimney," the company said.
The next day, another reserve boiler unit was launched at the station. This decision was made on the order of the Regional Dispatch Center of the power system to increase electricity generation. "The boiler unit was fired up using the same technology," Pavlodarenergo JSC explained.
The company also noted that emissions from firing and lighting boiler units with reserve fuel are provided for in the enterprise's regulatory documents. "The volume of pollutants generated during this process is included in the enterprise's overall environmental reporting," added Pavlodarenergo JSC.