Khadijah Sow, Year 5

On Wednesday 27th March 2024, Years 4 and 5 went on a field trip to see how electricity was formed for the whole Benin at Maria Gleta power station.

At 9:00 a.m. we left on the school MiniBus after eating our snack. We were contained by four adults on the bus, who were: Ms. Magdalene, our class teacher, Ms. Beatrice, an assistant, Ms. Ritcher, a parent and Mr Julien, the bus driver.

On the bus, my two friends and I sat together behind the driver’s seat for the 50-minute ride.

When we arrived we were greeted by Mr Seblin, a student's father who was the boss of the station, and other workers who led us to a room that looked like a meeting room.

In the room, Mr Seblin played two videos about electricity. The first video was about different ways we can make electricity. The second video was about how the gas travels through different vessels to make electricity in Benin.

After watching the videos, they explained to us all the safety rules in case of danger. They gave us ear plugs for the noisy room and helmets in case anything falls on our heads. Lastly, they showed us the safety points in case of fire.

After the safety rules, Years four and five separated into groups because we were a big class.

When we started the tour, they first showed us the trucks that carried gas to bring to the station. After, the gas will travel through the pipe to the generators, which turn on and generate electricity for Benin.

Before going back to the room, we went to see the pond of fish. They use fish to see if the water is good.

I woke up in the morning feeling grumpy, but as soon as I remembered the field trip I became very excited!

-Aboubacar Faye

Our trip to BMSC took us about 48 minutes. Along the way, we saw many cool and interesting things.

-Pharrell Toe

On arrival, in the meeting room, I learned how different kinds of energy can be converted to electricity. At BWSC, chemical energy (gas) is converted to electrical energy.

-Anaya Baba Musa

My favourite part was the seven huge engines because they make a very loud sound.

-Chehwe McCraken

We saw a control room where the seven big engines are controlled.

-Nora Rose

There was a room full of batteries. The batteries are used to operate the big engines when there's no power.

-Vivaan Tekwaani

Fishing at the pond and touching the baby fish was really fun!

-Tiana El Najaar

As the world is gearing towards clean energy, is BWSC ready for the switch to cleaner energy?

-Mrs Ritcher

Yes, the company is ready to switch to cleaner energy.

-Engr. Seblin