ENERGEX’s $5.6 million project to upgrade the electricity supply to Logan Village and surrounding areas in South East Queensland, Australia, reached a milestone with the arrival of a 35-ton power transformer. Using one of Australia’s largest mobile cranes, the 25 MVA machine was lifted into Centenary Place where it was installed in the new ENERGEX Logan Village substation. ENERGEX Works Group Manager Kevin Ball said the substation was on track to be operational by early December this year.

“The arrival of the transformer represents the final stages before the substation can begin to operate,” Mr Ball said.

More than 7000 homes and businesses in the areas of Logan Village, Chambers Flat and Jimboomba will benefit from this supply boost by significantly enhancing available capacity for electricity to these areas. Mr. Ball said, “The new substation would ensure ENERGEX keeps ahead of current and predicted growth in electricity demand in this rapidly developing area of South East Queensland. Importantly, ENERGEX technicians will have more switching options to restore power faster after unexpected damage to the network, which may be caused by storms, wild weather, vehicles hitting power poles, or underground cables being accidentally damaged.”

The project is part of a record $4 billion-plus five-year capital expenditure program currently being undertaken by ENERGEX. In the 2007-08 financial year, ENERGEX is investing $827 million on the 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.