New Covered Conductor powerlines help increase electricity reliability and reduce bushfire risk in Victoria
A new type of overhead powerline is being installed in Victoria to help reduce bushfire risk and improve electricity service reliability.
Known as Covered Conductor, developed in a collaboration between Swedish cable experts Amokabel and local engineering firm Groundline, the new powerline features insulation which protects the electricity conductor from external contact.
Covered Conductor dramatically reduces the standard powerline faults, such as vegetation and wildlife contact and clashing of bare-wire powerlines, which typically cause bushfires and power outages.
The Covered Conductor product is abrasion, water and UV resistant, designed specifically to meet the harsh Australian operating conditions. It was developed with the aid of a Victorian Government grant and has been approved for use by Energy Safe Victoria.
Covered Conductor is at least 4 times cheaper than undergrounding, which is also impractical to install in many locations.
Covered Conductor has now been installed in 15 high bush fire risk sites around Victoria by the major electricity distribution businesses, Powercor, AusNet Services and United Energy.
Powercor has commented that “safety and reliability of powerlines are dramatically increased with the use of covered conductor, with a fire risk reduction rating of more than 98% when compared to bare-wire lines”.
“This technology is showing a lot of promise and avoids some of the delays we encounter with undergrounding, such as when we hit hard rock,” said Powercor Manager Network Assurance, Dene Ward.
Amokabel Australia managing director, Stephen Rutland, says Covered Conductor represents a cost-effective option for upgrading Victoria’s ageing bare-wire electricity network to deliver community safety and reliability of electricity supply.
“Despite significant investment in powerline bushfire management, the latest Victorian Government’s Powerline Bushfire Safety Program “Benefits Realisation Report” released last month shows that powerline fire starts have increased in recent years, as have power outages, and the duration of outages.
(https://www.energy.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0026/555533/BR-Report.pdf, pp 22, 24, 25.)
“With an ageing bare-wire electricity distribution network and the increasing effects of Climate Change, Victoria needs to go the next step to deliver community safety and electricity reliability. Covered Conductor is now a viable alternative,” Mr Rutland said.
The issue has also been highlighted by the Electrical Trades Union which is conducting a national campaign to demand electricity network upgrades and maintenance, saying that existing electricity assets “are a bushfire risk and are unable to withstand severe weather,” (ETU, Power Not Cuts, https://www.powernotcuts.com.au/)
Covered Conductor features three layers of insulation, with an abrasion resistant UV-protected outer layer of High Density Polyethylene. It is lightweight and strong, requiring minimal additional infrastructure when replacing existing bare-wire powerlines.
CSIRO research from 2017 has found that the fire risk reduction from using Covered Conductor is between 98.4% and 99.0%, which is comparable to undergrounding at 99.1%.* This makes Covered Conductor by far the most cost-effective bushfire risk reduction technology available today.
Covered Conductor also provides a major increase in network reliability.
With some Australian distribution companies citing that two-thirds of their outages are vegetation related, the benefits of covered conductor in reducing outages and related power restoration time are significant.
Another benefit of Covered Conductor is the increased safety that the fully covered solution provides to lineworkers, the general public and Australian wildlife.
Covered Conductor, manufactured in Sweden by Amokabel, is the only large scale, economical and safe powerline technology solution that has been developed, tested and trialled in Australia.
Support is available, with field crew installation training, onsite support and accessory and conductor ordering expertise all easily accessible to Networks choosing to replace bare wire.
If you’d like to find out more then get in touch or come and see us at Energy Networks Conference and exhibition 2022:
