Lion's share earmarked for poles

Richard Fletcher
Richard Fletcher
The largest chunk of the millions Aurora Energy plans to pour into its network over the next decade will go towards pole and crossarm renewals, the council-owned company says.

Aurora, owned by Dunedin City Holdings Ltd, is forecast to spend $748.4 million in total on its network by 2028, including capital and operational expenditure.

In Aurora's asset management plan (AMP), released last Friday, the company stated it planned to put $150 million into the pole and crossarm renewals.

The AMP revealed half of Aurora's poles had not been tested since July 2012.

The company supplies power to about 90,000 consumers around Dunedin and Central Otago, and is being taken to court by the Commerce Commission for breaches of regulated quality standards.

The plan includes $30 million of distribution transformer renewals, $63 million of cables, $55 million of overhead conductors, $20 million of renewals on power transformers, and $17 million of secondary systems assets.

A tagged pole due for replacement.Photo: ODT files
A tagged pole due for replacement.Photo: ODT files
On the list of operational expenses was $46.7 million in better ''vegetation management'', which would reduce outages and the risk of injury or death to the public.

When it came to buildings and grounds, Aurora planned to replace the buildings at four of the company's lowest-rated zone substations, and building reinforcements would be undertaken at a further eight buildings.

Aurora has 39 permanent substations in total.

Aurora chief executive Richard Fletcher said on Friday concerns raised in the media in 2016 did prompt ''positive action'' from the company.

Aurora believed the network was safe, Dr Fletcher said.

''We do acknowledge that there are a portion of our assets which necessarily will carry a higher public safety risk given the fact that they are old and in poorer condition than other assets.''

However, whistleblower Richard Healey, who resigned from the then joint company Delta-Aurora in 2016, said Dr Fletcher's claim the network was safe appeared ''a little bit disingenuous'' considering half the network's poles had not been recently tested.

He also questioned the impact of the council not receiving dividends from the power company.

In the company's most recent statement of intent to June 2019, Aurora said no dividends would be paid for the next three years.

DCHL general manager Jemma Adams said the impact of Aurora's network investment was already accounted for in DCHL's long-term plans and forecasts.

When it came to the debt level of the holding company, the 2017 AMP said $719.4 million would be spent on the network, and the increase of $29 million would not be a ''significant change'' as far as DCHL group debt was concerned.

Any price rise for consumers will need to be assessed and approved by the Commerce Commission, in 2020.

elena.mcphee@odt.co.nz


 

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