Jump to content

Matla Power Station

Coordinates: 26°16′57″S 29°8′27″E / 26.28250°S 29.14083°E / -26.28250; 29.14083
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Matla Power Station
Map
Location of Matla Power Station in South Africa
CountrySouth Africa
LocationMpumalanga
Coordinates26°16′57″S 29°8′27″E / 26.28250°S 29.14083°E / -26.28250; 29.14083
Commission date1983
OwnerEskom
Thermal power station
Primary fuel
Power generation
Units operational6[1]
Nameplate capacity3,600 Megawatt[1]

Matla Power Station in Mpumalanga, South Africa, is a coal-fired power plant operated by Eskom and consuming the output from the Matla coal mine.

History

[edit]

Construction started in 1974, and the last unit was commissioned in July 1983. In 1981, the southernmost smokestack measuring 276 metres (906 ft) in height was demolished after it partially collapsed during construction, killing 4 workers. It held the world record for the tallest free standing structure to be explosively demolished [2][3] for 24 years until the 2006 demolition of the 300 metres (980 ft) Westerholt Power Station[4] chimney.

The actual explosion was also used in a gag in Jamie Uys' Funny People 2, where an electrician is instructed to do some wiring and is warned that improper connection will cause the stack to explode.[5]

See also

[edit]
[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "MATLA POWER STATION". Eskom. Archived from the original on 6 May 2012. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
  2. ^ "Implosion World Records". ImplosionWorld. Archived from the original on 2023-04-22. Retrieved 12 December 2010.
  3. ^ "MATLA POWER STATION". Eskom. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
  4. ^ "The Raw Story | Experts demolish 300-metre power station chimney in Germany". rawstory.com. Archived from the original on 2014-05-04.
  5. ^ "Funny People II". IMDB.