THE extra energy supplied by the Daya Bay nuclear plant will meet demand and will not forestall the introduction of the massive power plant at Black Point, China Light and Power spokesman Dominic Tai Kuen-kwan said yesterday.
Daya Bay will be opened officially tomorrow and an announcement made as to when it will start sending electricity to Hong Kong.
Seventy per cent of its output, or 1,260 megawatts, is earmarked for the territory and in test runs last year the electricity linked into Hong Kong's grid without a hitch and passed all safety checks. The rest of the power will go to Guangdong.
In Hong Kong, the Daya Bay electricity is to be directed to the Yuen Long and Tai Po sub-stations and its distribution will be monitored from a system control station, also in Tai Po.
''Figuratively speaking, it will be like flicking a switch. A machine will turn on and generate electricity, and a switch in the sub-station will move the electricity through,'' Mr Tai said.
''The power station is ready to go any time.'' China Light's other plants, at Castle Peak and Tsing Yi Island, are coal-fired and produce 6,472 megawatts - enough to meet the peak demand of 5,281 megawatts but not to keep the needed spare capacity of 30 to 40 per cent.