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In charge of the electricity distribution operations in 5 of the 11 cities affected by the earthquake which occurred on February 6, 2023 and was considered as the disaster of the century, Toroslar EDAŞ has sustained its intense efforts initiated by the Company since the first day of the earthquake, particularly in Hatay and Gaziantep, throughout the year with a budget of TL 1.9 billion.
Being one of the three companies of Enerjisa Distribution Companies that provides electricity distribution services to more than 22 million people in Türkiye, together with Başkent EDAŞ and Ayedaş, Toroslar EDAŞ put all its efforts and achieved to restore its grid capacity to pre-earthquake levels in the region, especially in Hatay, where the earthquake hit hard.
Toroslar EDAŞ, a survivor of the devastating earthquake itself with its 16 employees who passed away because of the earthquake, destroyed or damaged service buildings, and network components including hundreds of transformers, panels, poles and kilometers of conductors buried under debris in the earthquake-impacted cities, immediately restored the electricity distribution infrastructure of the region, while also trying to heal its wounds.
Besides meeting the post-earthquake requirements of its employees and their families, who put great efforts to continue working in the region, although some of whom lost their homes and most of whom lost their relatives and loved ones, Toroslar EDAŞ also implemented the psychological support programs.
Toroslar Elektrik Dağıtım A.Ş. (Toroslar EDAŞ), the company making the highest amount of investment in its industry in Türkiye for years, has invested TL 1.9 billion as of the first anniversary of the devastating earthquake, as part of its efforts to restore energy in the region since the first day of the earthquake.
In the past one year, Toroslar EDAŞ used its qualified workforce, adequate financial means available and its strong vehicle and material inventory in the best possible way and achieved to exceed the pre-earthquake grid levels in terms of Installed Capacity, High-Voltage and Low-Voltage line lengths in the region.
The company endeavored and put all its efforts into numerous processes, including emergency power cuts for security purposes in the first days, providing energy support for search and rescue, lighting, and communication activities with hundreds of generators, and subsequently distributing energy to tent and container cities, and then providing energy for debris removal and reconstruction of settlements.
Having a service area consisting of six cities including Adana, Gaziantep, Hatay, Kilis, Mersin, Osmaniye, Mersin, among which Mersin was the only city that was not affected by the earthquake, Toroslar EDAŞ sustained its investments in Mersin to meet the increasing energy demand due to the rapid increase in population following the earthquake.
The world's largest generator operation after the disaster of the century
Toroslar EDAŞ employees, who rushed to serve once they ensured the safety of their families during the acute period of the earthquake, had used all the generators in the company's inventory to operate the tools and machines in search and rescue operations and provide lighting to continue the efforts at night, as well as carrying out rescue operations from buildings with basket-platform boom vehicles used to reach electric poles.
Teams from other Enerjisa Distribution Companies, Başkent EDAŞ and Ayedaş, departing from Ankara, Kırıkkale, Çankırı, Kastamonu, Karabük, Bartın, Zonguldak and Istanbul, arrived at the region on the first day of the disaster.
Considering the fuel shortage in the region, pick-up trucks were equipped with fuel tanks to ensure continuous refueling of generators. Generators operated in the field were refueled from the tankers sent to the region via these pick-up trucks, and energy was supplied by these generators in locations where the grid was out of operation.
In the following two weeks after the earthquake, the number of field workers in the region increased to 3,167 including the support teams, and the world's largest generator operation managed from a single center was carried out.
As of February 22, 2,472 generators, ranging from 5 kilowatts to 2,000 kilowatts reaching a total capacity of 41,000 kilowatts, were operating in the region, and the energy was continuously supplied by these generators with the established refueling network.
All electricity distribution teams were mobilized and keep putting all their efforts with 198 basket-platform boom vehicles and 969 pick-up trucks.
Antakya Logistics Service Center becomes home to employees and their families
Since Antakya Regional Directorate building of Toroslar EDAŞ was in ruins, and the Logistics Service Center, which is located over a vast area to store the electricity distribution materials of the company, and the containers within had become the new center of operations.
The center was swiftly equipped with containers, a cafeteria, showers, and toilets for support teams to use and hosted Toroslar EDAŞ employees and their families in dozens of containers placed around the center. The company's senior management and engineers also stayed in the containers within this center and managed the operations from a container assigned as the crisis center.
Besides the electricity distribution employees, security forces, search and rescue teams and citizens in the surrounding areas were provided support in the center with all the resources available. Similar centers were established in other districts affected by the earthquake.
Toroslar EDAŞ employees and their families were placed in container cities of 232 and 32 containers in Hatay and Iskenderun, respectively, which are all equipped with the necessary goods. The company also delivered containers to 236 employees who wanted to place them on their private lands such as their own gardens or fields.
Critical communication problem in the acute period resolved with the Disaster Communication System
As the mobile telecommunication infrastructure was down due to the earthquake and communication became one of the prominent issues in the region, the Disaster Communication System, which had been developed by Enerjisa Distribution Companies and kept ready for operation in Ayedaş in the event of an earthquake in Istanbul, was brought to Antakya to enable communication between the teams and the center.
Communication and coordination of Toroslar EDAŞ teams, who were equipped with on-board radios installed on their vehicles, were provided via 3 mobile towers and the communication station mounted at higher locations and powered by solar energy, as per Health and Safety rules to avoid any electrocution. Within days, the majority of the street lighting in Antakya center was re-supplied power.
Thanks to the system used for the first time in the industry, radio frequencies were also provided to other infrastructure institutions and organizations that require communication in the region. On the other hand, mobile telecommunication companies were provided support to install base stations over the lighting poles and these stations were supplied energy to revive mobile telecommunication.
Hatay and Nurdağı and Islahiye, the most affected districts in Gaziantep, focused
In the past one year following the earthquake, Toroslar EDAŞ has spent a total of approximately TL 1.9 billion in Hatay and Gaziantep to continue its investments, as well as maintenance and repair works in the region.
During this period, 146 kilometers of conductors were connected in Hatay and Gaziantep, and 493 transformers having an installed capacity of 556,980 kVA were installed. While 7,869 lighting fixtures were installed by the field teams, 206-kilometer-long high voltage and 352-kilometer-long low voltage lines and underground cables were installed.
During the same period, maintenance and repair activities were carried out for 316 panels, 666 transformers, 4280 fixtures and 228 buildings in Reyhanlı, Kırıkhan, İskenderun, Dörtyol and Hatay City Center, besides 47 panels, 40 transformers, 212 fixtures and 96 buildings in Islahiye and Nurdağı.
Pre-earthquake grid level restored in the region
With the support of its sister companies, Başkent EDAŞ and Ayedaş, Toroslar EDAŞ, one of the Enerjisa Distribution Companies, achieved to exceed the pre-earthquake grid levels thanks to the devoted efforts of 2,150 field employees in Hatay and 184 field employees in Nurdağı and Islahiye districts in Gaziantep despite all the difficulties endured.
Before the earthquake, there were 9,663 transformers –transferred, corporate and private– in Hatay, and 1,995 transformers in Nurdağı and Islahiye districts in Gaziantep. However, thanks to the investments put into operation at a great speed following the earthquake, the number of transformers was increased to 10,297 in Hatay City Merkez, Arsuz, Dörtyol, İskenderun, Kırıkhan and Reyhanlı districts and to 2,094 in Nurdağı and Islahiye districts in Gaziantep.
Thanks to the investments in Hatay, the total installed capacity was increased from 1,429,217 kVA -before the earthquake- to 1,538,347 kVA after the earthquake, the length of the medium voltage line was increased from 6,946 km -before the earthquake- to 7,119 km after the earthquake, and the length of the low voltage line was increased from 15,876 km -before the earthquake- to 13,182 km, completely meeting the electricity consumption requirement in Hatay.
On the other hand, the investments made in the two districts in Gaziantep resulted in the total installed power to increase from 378,432 kVA -before the earthquake- to 447,127 kVA after the earthquake, the length of the medium voltage line increased from 1,286 km -before the earthquake- to reach 1,347 km after the earthquake, and the length of the low voltage line increased from 1,406 km -before the earthquake- to 1,483 km, completely meeting the electricity consumption requirement in the region.
Efforts to supply uninterrupted energy both in summer and winter
In addition to the financial damages endured due to the earthquake, Toroslar EDAŞ fulfilled the requirement to re-supply energy to meet the urgent heating need in the region as the earthquake hit the region in the winter, and then survived the record-breaking load on the grids due to the increased energy consumption in the hottest summer of recent years due to the A/C use.
Toroslar EDAŞ swiftly responded and met the energy requirements of the container cities established to meet the sheltering needs in the region after the earthquake. Energy requirements of 229 container cities in Hatay and 21 container cities in Gaziantep were fulfilled by an installed capacity of 450 MW and 46 MW, respectively.
Grid investments -up to the panels where the jurisdiction of the electricity distribution company in the network ends- were completed at a great pace. The interior electrical installations within tent and container cities after these panels were carried out by the relevant authorities under the coordination of public institutions.
On the other hand, the outdoor lighting of these areas was provided in a short period of time by installing poles and fixtures with the efforts of Toroslar EDAŞ teams.
Warnings made regarding interior installations outside the jurisdiction of the distribution company
Toroslar EDAŞ teams worked devotedly to ensure energy supply security in their jurisdictions -up to the panels- in the container cities, however, they also regularly informed the authorities in the container cities regarding the measures to be taken in the interior electrical installations after the panel although these installations were outside the jurisdiction of the company.
The enormous demand due to devices such as electric heaters and heat pumps to provide heating to the survivors of the earthquake living in containers during the winter season, caused transformers to be overloaded. So, these transformers were replaced with high-capacity ones and new poles were erected to make energy-supplying conductors to endure the high demand.
Thus, all resources have been mobilized to ensure that people living in containers were affected by the cold winter conditions as little as possible.
Over 6,000 scheduled cuts for demolition upon the request of AFAD
While the efforts in the earthquake zone was ongoing with mandatory scheduled cuts due to the health and safety of field workers, power cuts were also requested by AFAD during the demolition works carried out for damaged structures in the region.
The number of such scheduled cuts reached 3,311 in Hatay and 6,105 in the overall Taurus region in the past one year.
On the other hand, unplanned power outages that occurred due to damage to the electricity distribution network as a result of uncontrolled demolitions and unauthorized third-party interventions were resolved as soon as possible.
Psychological support to more than 1100 employees in the past year
While Toroslar EDAŞ continued its efforts to supply uninterrupted and high-quality energy in Hatay and Gaziantep, cities within its area of responsibility, despite the severe effects of the earthquake and challenging conditions due after the earthquake that occurred on February 6, 2023, the Company also did everything in its power for its employees and their families survived from the earthquake.
Since the first day of the earthquake, psychological support has been provided by professionals in adult, adolescent, and child psychology to the employees of Enerjisa Distribution Companies working in Hatay and Gaziantep and their families to protect them from the severe effects of the earthquake.
Seminars on psychological first aid were held with the participation of more than 1100 employees. Various events and games were organized in a total of 37 sessions held in Iskenderun and Antakya. While 261 employees have been provided online psychological training, over 200 therapy sessions were held.
“We will continue our investments in the earthquake zone”
Regarding the restoring and restructuring investments in Hatay and the efforts put in the past one year, Oğuzhan Özsürekci, General Manager at Enerjisa Distribution Companies, stated:
“We have come a long way with the efforts we put to repair the damage to the electrical infrastructure in the earthquake zone and the successful and devoted efforts of our colleagues in the field. After the earthquake, we reconstructed the electrical infrastructure in the earthquake zone by an investment of approximately TL 1.9 billion to meet the energy requirement in the region in vital areas, including economic, social, cultural, security and healthcare.
We will continue our investments in these cities, which have hosted numerous ancient civilizations throughout history, while restoring and restructuring operations also continue following the earthquake. We, Enerjisa Distribution Companies, will continue to do our part and create a difference for a better future in the earthquake region we serve with Toroslar EDAŞ.”
About Toroslar EDAŞ
Along with Başkent EDAŞ and Ayedaş, Toroslar EDAŞ, one of the three Enerjisa Enerji Distribution Companies, which pioneer the electricity distribution industry in investment, technology, and customer satisfaction, continues its operations to supply high-quality and uninterrupted electricity in Adana, Gaziantep, Kilis, Mersin, Osmaniye and Hatay. While Başkent EDAŞ, one of the other electricity distribution companies of Enerjisa Enerji, serves in Ankara, Bartın, Çankırı, Karabük, Kastamonu, Kırıkkale and Zonguldak, Ayedaş provides services at the Anatolian Side of Istanbul.
