Alice Springs power system still exposed 18 months after major blackout Utilities Commission says in latest progress report
THE power system in Alice Springs is still exposed to a “higher risk” of a major incident nearly 18 months after a mass blackout because authorities are yet to permanently fix some issues, the utilities watchdog has warned
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THE power system in Alice Springs is still exposed to a “higher risk” of a major incident nearly 18 months after a mass blackout because authorities are yet to permanently fix some issues, the utilities watchdog has warned.
The Utilities Commission, in its latest progress report into the Alice Springs system black of October 2019, said there was also “no clear time frame” as to when Power and Water Corp and Territory Generation would be able to fix those issues.
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The Utilities Commission also noted nearly 50 per cent of the 1086 changes Power and Water Corp had been told to action after major incidents in the last six years were still outstanding.
Of those 507 outstanding recommendations, 229 have been left hanging for more than two years and 143 relate to the Alice Springs power system.
But the Commission is “satisfied” that Power and Water Corp are making progress as it appears “increased priority and resources” had been allocated to address the issue.
The mass blackout in Alice Springs was triggered by an unexpected cloud that reduced solar power output, causing a cascading effect of machine and system failures that ultimately led to 12,000 people being without power.
According to the Utility Commissions report, two-thirds of the recommendations made after the major incident have since been completed by Power and Water Corp and T-Gen, with another 11 “underway” or “partially complete”.
But it also found it was “suboptimal” that 16 months after the incident known issues were “still not permanently addressed”.
“As such, the Alice Springs power system remains potentially exposed to a higher risk of a major system incident and or an extended restoration time from such an incident,” the report stated.
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Energy Minister Eva Lawler said Territorians “deserve stable, reliable and affordable power” and that she had made it clear finalising the changes needed to be made a “priority”.
Ms Lawler will also request the Utilities Commission publish progress reports every six months until the changes are completed.
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