Massive power upgrades for Brisbane’s southern suburbs

14 southern Brisbane suburbs are set to benefit from $14 million being spent by Energex on a number of projects to boost the capacity of the electricity network.

Minister for Mines and Energy Geoff Wilson said almost 20,000 homes and businesses would benefit from the upgrades.

“The upgrades will provide a more reliable and robust power supply to the local area,” Mr Wilson said.

“The boost to the local network includes a new substation for Holland Park East and upgrades to the Mt Gravatt substation.

“Energex will install 1.3km of new underground cables from the Upper Mount Gravatt substation to the intersection of Logan Road and Klump Road and upgrade 2km of existing overhead network,” he said.

Member for Mount Gravatt Judy Spence said the popularity of the Mount Gravatt area had lead to an increased demand for local electricity.

“In recent years, ENERGEX has seen a substantial increase in power demand in Brisbane’s southern suburbs, particularly around the Sunnybank and Mount Gravatt areas,” Ms Spence said.

“Much of this increase is directly attributed to population growth, increased density of housing, business expansion and the rapid take up of affordable home air-conditioning.

“The upgrade is welcome news for the residents of Mount Gravatt and will allow ENERGEX to keep pace with current and future local demands.”

Ms Spence said the multi-million dollar upgrades would allow ENERGEX technicians to restore power more easily during unexpected interruptions by redirecting electricity from other parts of the network.

“The upgrade will ensure that technicians can restore power quickly and efficiently, so that the residents of Mount Gravatt and surrounding suburbs will not be without power for long,” Ms Spence said.

Suburbs to benefit from the upgrades include Mount Gravatt, Mount Gravatt East, Holland Park, Macgregor, Mansfield, Nathan, Tarragindi, Upper Mount Gravatt, Wishart, Coopers Plains, Eight Miles Plains, Robertson, Salisbury and Sunnybank.

The upgrade is part of a record $4 billion-plus five-year capital expenditure program currently being undertaken by ENERGEX.

ENERGEX is investing $827 million this year on upgrades to its electricity network while a further $306 million has been set aside to maintain and operate the network.

Media contact: Brooke Johnson (07) 3224 7332