Energex powers up $4 million Sunshine Coast electricity upgrade

Electricity supplies to the booming northern end of the Sunshine Coast have been boosted with the completion of a new $4 million substation at Peregian, Energy Minister Geoff Wilson said today.

The substation consists of a new 25MVA transformer and switchgear that bolsters power supplies to more than 3000 customers in the surrounding area.

The new infrastructure also reduces the electricity load on the Coolum substation, benefiting a further 5,000 homes and businesses.

Mr Wilson said a rapidly expanding domestic housing market, affordable home air conditioning and increased commercial activity on the Sunshine Coast were the drivers for recent power upgrades.

“This part of the Coast is one of the fastest growing areas in Energex’s network, with around 24 additional customers connecting to the local power network every day,” Mr Wilson said.

“Energex is continuing to upgrade the network to cater for the forecast power usage growth of around 40 percent over the next six years.”

The substation works coincided with more than $800,000 worth of local electricity network upgrades, including underground cable laying and upgrades to overhead lines.

Mr Wilson said the new substation and improved local supply network would also enable the faster restoration of power faster after unexpected damage to the network caused by storms, wild weather, vehicles hitting power poles or underground cables being accidentally damaged.

Mr Wilson thanked locals for their patience during the upgrades.

Energex is one of the Sunshine Coast’s biggest employers, with more than 200 staff permanently based in the company’s North Coast hub area which includes the local council areas of Cooloola, Noosa, Maroochy and Caloundra.

In the 2007-08 financial year ENERGEX is investing $827 million on upgrades to its electricity network while a further $306 million has been set aside to maintain and operate the network – that’s an overall average of more than $3 million a day.

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