China News Service, March 2 (Xinhua) According to foreign media reports, on the afternoon of the 1st local time, a large-scale power outage occurred in parts of Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, and surrounding areas, affecting more than 20 million people.
According to reports, a fire broke out in a local ranch, resulting in a short circuit of three high-voltage transmission lines, and the "Atucha No. 1" nuclear power plant was affected and stopped operating.
According to reports, the power outage affected more than 20 million people, accounting for about 40% of the total number of electricity users in Argentina.
Argentine Nuclear Power, which operates the plant, confirmed it was unable to operate due to "grid problems".
Work on the nuclear power plant is scheduled to resume in at least 48 hours.
Argentina's energy ministry said it was investigating the cause of the disruption to power supplies, including at the nuclear power plant.
In addition, the large-scale power outages came at a time of intense heat in Argentina. The power outages caused the collapse of the transportation system in major cities, paralyzed factories, and affected residents' water consumption.
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported that large-scale blackouts are not uncommon in Argentina.
In 2019, a massive power failure plunged tens of millions of people in Argentina and neighboring Uruguay into darkness.
In 2020, hundreds of thousands of households in Buenos Aires were also affected by power outages.