Powerline safety bills pain for Victorians

COUNTRY Victorians are paying $500 million for powerline upgrades they say are doing little to improve their safety, but are pushing up their power bills.

Ignition point: Jill Porter near powerlines at Terang, where she runs a dairy farm with her husband. The couple’s farm was the first to be burnt out during last year’s St Patrick’s Day fires that spread though out the southwest of Victoria. Picture: Andy Rogers

COUNTRY Victorians are paying $500 million for powerline upgrades they say are doing little to improve their safety, but are pushing up their power bills.

In 2016 the government drafted regulations allowing Powercor and AusNet to pass the $500 million cost of upgrading powerlines in the state’s high-risk bushfire zones on to their regional customers.

Terang dairy farmer Jill Porter, who lost fencing, fodder and 300 dairy cows in last year’s St Patrick’s Day fires, said regional Victorians resented having to pay the full cost of powerline upgrades, which were of little value, while the Government spent billions on Melbourne.

“The State Government is investing over $6 billion (now revised to $8.3b) on rail crossing in Melbourne, while country Victorians continue to live with the ever growing fear of fire from ageing and failing electrical infrastructure,” Ms Porter said.

“The cost to the entire community from such fires is enormous, Black Saturday cost between $4-7 billion and we lost the lives of too many (173) people.”

The 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission called on the government to fund at least half the cost of powerline upgrades, but to date the government has put just $250 million of its own money on the table.

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Counsel Assisting the 2009 Royal Commission Jack Rush, who lives in Molyullah, said it was only fair that all Victorians contributed to the cost of upgrading powerlines.

“It’s not solely the people living in bushfire prone regions, who should be responsible for electricity line upgrades,” Mr Rush said. “The entire state benefits because it reduces the risk of another Black Saturday.”

But questions have been raised over the benefits of the current $500 million in upgrades to automatic circuit reclosers that can be remotely disabled on total fire ban days, as well as rapid earth current limiters at substations.

Ms Porter said the ACR proved useless during the St Patrick’s Day fires, which she said failed to stop a fallen line sparking the Garvoc fire.

She urged the Government to cover (insulate) powerlines instead.

Attentis Technology consultants have also warned: “we do not believe that REFCL or ACR can deliver the intended objectives without complementary technology to confirm, or otherwise, a fire start.

“Furthermore, there is the real possibility that this approach could make situations more hazardous and endanger human life.”

Analysis by Victorian Energy Policy Centre director Bruce Mountain showed regional Victorians were already paying higher network costs than Melburnians, with residential customers using 4800kWh a year in AusNet’s distribution zone paying annual network charges of $592, compared to Citipower customers paying $393 or those with United Energy in Melbourne paying $436. Powercor’s network pricing for the same customers is $470.