State-owned oil refiner CPC Corp, Taiwan (CPC, 台灣中油) yesterday rejected allegations by its contractor Lumax International Corp (巨路) that CPC was solely responsible for Tuesday’s nationwide blackout, saying that a 10-member investigation team would soon address the public’s doubts.
“We are not dodging responsibility [for the outage],” CPC chairman Derek Chen (陳金德) said in a broadcast interview.
Lumax was responsible for the procurement and maintenance of the power supply system of the Datan power plant, he said, while sharing documents with reporters after an interview with Hit FM radio host Clara Chou (周玉蔻).
Photo: Liao Chen-huei, Taipei Times
CPC and Lumax engineers were to replace two components in a control room, but failed to switch the power system from automatic to manual mode, Chen said.
Lumax on Wednesday night said that the contract between the two firms limits its responsibilities to the procurement of components and its staff were only assisting CPC workers with the installation on Tuesday.
The massive blackout on Tuesday affected more than half of Taiwan’s 13 million users.
“The heads of the two companies on Tuesday admitted that they had breached standard operating procedures,” Chen told reporters, adding that the refiner needed to change its corporate culture and management style.
He said CPC would not ask for compensation or take legal action against Lumax before a thorough investigation is completed.
A first probe into the blackout by a 10-member team is expected to be finished today, CPC said.
Lumax — which has collaborated with CPC for more than 10 years — also provides process control services for other leading companies, such as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) and Formosa Plastics Group (台塑集團), the nation’s largest industrial conglomerate, the company's Web site showed.
Lumax shares have fluctuated dramatically after the incident, falling 3.6 percent to NT$50.2 in Taipei trading on Wednesday but rising 5.2 percent yesterday at NT$52.8.
Meanwhile, acting Minister of Economic Affairs Shen Jong-chin (沈榮津) yesterday said the State-owned Enterprise Commission is to clarify who should be held accountable for Tuesday’s blackout.
“I have requested that the commission step in and inspect whether CPC or Lumax should bear the responsibility,” Shen told reporters at the ministry.
It was Shen’s first public appearance after being appointed acting minister on Wednesday morning.
Shen said the ministry would also pay extra attention when reviewing the nation’s power supply to ensuring that all personnel abides by standard operating procedures to prevent human errors disrupting the system.
Additional reporting by Lauly Li
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