Power outage planned for Venus Bay maintenance works
Five communities lose power from 9am to 4pm on Wednesday September 16 while AusNet replaces poles under its bushfire maintenance program
AUSNET is carrying out maintenance works to improve power reliability for customers across five South Gippsland and Bass Coast communities.
The works cover Venus Bay, Inverloch, Middle Tarwin, Pound Creek and Tarwin Lower as part of AusNet’s bushfire maintenance program, and include replacing a number of power poles and associated network equipment.
AusNet general manager network operations and delivery Ross Young said the works were part of an ongoing effort to improve long-term reliability.
“We’re proactively maintaining and strengthening the network to reduce the risk of unexpected outages and keep power flowing to homes and businesses,” Mr Young said.
A planned power outage will be needed to complete the works safely, running from 9am to 4pm on Wednesday September 16 and affecting 2600 AusNet customers.
Affected customers will already have received a notification from AusNet about the outage.
Mr Young thanked customers for their patience and understanding while the works were carried out, and urged residents to charge battery packs, fill an esky with ice and stock up on bottled water if they rely on an electric water pump.
Life support customers are asked to activate their emergency plan and can call AusNet’s priority line any time on 1800 818 832.
The Venus Bay works come as AusNet also completes a separate $1.8 million wildlife protection program to reduce animal-caused outages, with animal-proofing upgrades delivered at 260 sites across the network including protective plastic guards, rotating spinners and new transformer equipment designed to discourage possums from nesting.
AusNet head of fault delivery Michael Walton said animals were responsible for more than 10 per cent of power outages across the network, with the upgrades targeting locations experiencing higher-than-average levels of animal-related faults.
“By targeting these high-impact locations, we’re improving reliability and reducing outages for customers in communities most affected by animal-related faults,” Mr Walton said.
More tips on preparing for an outage are available at ausnet.com.au/outagetips.
