Matraville to Maroubra cable project

Our substations in Military Road, Matraville and Robey Street, Maroubra are connected by a 132,000 volt fluid filled underground cable that runs between the two sites. The cable is approximately 40 years old and is ready to be retired. The project is part of a program to retire fluid filled cables across our network.

There are several things we need to consider when planning cable routes. These include:

• cost (minimising the impact on electricity bills)
• minimising community and traffic impacts
• avoiding existing utility services in roads
• ground conditions
• environmental and heritage impacts
• technical feasibility.

Under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979, Ausgrid is the nominated determining authority for assessing and approving works for the Matraville to Maroubra cable project. 

As part of this process, an environmental assessment (known as a Review of Environmental Factors or REF) will be prepared.  The REF will investigate the potential environmental impacts associated with the construction and operation of the new cable and will include a range of specialist studies and feedback from the community, councils and other authorities.

The REF is being prepared and is expected to be on public exhibition in the second quarter of 2020. Community feedback will be considered prior to the project being assessed for construction approval. 

Ausgrid started engaging with key stakeholders, such as Randwick City Council in November 2019 to obtain early feedback on the preferred cable route.

Engagement with residents and businesses along and around the preferred cable route started in late February 2020 when the first project newsletter was distributed. A copy of the newsletter can be found at the bottom of this page. 

On 3 March 2020, we held an information session at the Maroubra Senior Citizens Centre to seek local information and community feedback on the preferred cable route. Interested community members were invited to the information session through the newsletter, social media and an advert in the local newspaper.   

We will continue to engage with the community and stakeholders during each stage of the project. 

Ausgrid welcomes questions or comments about the project at any time (see project contacts top right). Community feedback assists us to identify potential issues and address them in our construction plans to minimise impacts.

Pending approval, this project would involve installing the new 132,000-volt cable and spare conduit through streets in Matraville and Maroubra. Retiring the existing cable between the substations would involve some work at various locations along that cable route and at the substations themselves. 

As with any construction work, there would be some noise and dust, and temporary traffic, access and parking disruptions, but we would make every effort to keep these to a minimum. 

Click here to view an information graphic showing the different stages of cable laying. 

Work to install the new cables would generally include:

• digging trenches in roads to lay conduits (plastic pipes) to accommodate the new cables 
• backfilling trenches and temporary resurfacing of impacted areas (trenching and temporary resurfacing takes about three days outside each property depending on ground and weather conditions)
• excavating underground joint bays at various locations along the cable route
• feeding in and joining sections of cable at the joint bay locations
• permanently restoring impacted areas, in consultation with Council once the overall project is complete

Work to retire the existing 132,000 volt cables would involve:

• excavating existing joint bays along the cable route
• removing fluid
• removing cable equipment
• disconnecting the cables
• backfilling excavations