Power upgrade boosts Southport medical precinct

ENERGEX has completed an electricity upgrade in Southport that will boost power supplies to local medical facilities, including the GoldCoastHospital, and benefit about 14,500 local homes and businesses.

Minister for Mines and Energy Geoff Wilson said the project involved the staged installation of around 1.8km of 11,000 volt underground electricity cable.

“The work involved excavating, building trenches and boring under the road to lay new cables near the ENERGEX Southport substation in Spendelove Street.

“Sections of Ferry Road and Queen, Nerang, Tweed and Little High streets were involved in the upgrade,” Mr Wilson said.

“ENERGEX did its best to reduce the impacts on business operators, pedestrians and motorists with safety barriers installed around the works.

“On behalf of ENERGEX, I take this opportunity to thank local residents and motorists for their patience and understanding during this necessary upgrade work to the power network.”

Member for Southport, Peter Lawlor said the new cable would reinforce electricity supplies in the area and provide additional power for the Gold Coast Hospital, the GriffithUniversityMedicalSchool and Oral Health Centre, surrounding medical facilities and other businesses.

“Homes and businesses in parts of Southport, Main Beach, Parkwood, Ashmore, Molendinar and Labrador which are supplied from ENERGEX’s Southport electricity substation will also benefit from the upgrade,” Mr Lawlor said.

ENERGEX has a strong focus on installing new electricity works underground where practical. In the last four years ENERGEX has installed almost 3000 km of new underground electricity cable in south east Queensland – about the equivalent of travelling by road from Brisbane to Darwin.

The Southport upgrade is part of a record $3 billion-plus five-year capital expenditure program currently being undertaken by ENERGEX.

In the 2006/07 financial year ENERGEX is spending $643 million on the electricity network while a further $263 million has been committed to maintenance and operation of the network.

ENERGEX supplies electricity to a population of around 2.7 million people in south east Queensland through more than 50,000 km of overhead and underground power lines. The company’s distribution area includes over half a million power poles, 43,000 transformers and more than 290,000 street lights.

Media Inquiries: Ellen McIntyre Minister’s Office 3225 1819

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