Picnic Point to Revesby Cable Project

The Revesby Zone Substation is currently supplied by two 132,000 Volt fluid filled underground cables. The existing cables are more than 40 years old and are approaching the end of their service life. They have experienced failures, fluid leaks and increased rates of corrective works in recent years and must be replaced to maintain a safe and reliable power supply to customers.

The project is part of a program to retire fluid filled cables across our network.

The proposal involves replacing the cables of the same voltage along the existing cable route on Tarro Avenue, Eastern Avenue and Kennedy Street, crossing Weston Street, Tower Street and Burns Bay Road. The southernmost section would access a path through the Georges River National Park.

As we plan this cable replacement project, there are a range of factors Ausgrid needs to consider, including:

• community impacts
• availability of space around existing utility services
• environmental and social impacts
• cost (minimising the impact on electricity bills)
• technical feasibility
• traffic impacts.

Ausgrid is responsible for assessing and approving works under the Picnic Point to Revesby cable project. This process includes preparation of an environmental assessment (Review of Environmental Factors or REF). The REF includes a range of specialist studies and input from the community, councils and other authorities.

The REF will be on exhibition for comment from Friday 7 September to Friday 28 September 2018 and Ausgrid encourages further community comments on the proposal at this stage. You can submit your feedback via the link on this page or contact us and we can send you a form.

Download the REF in the section below.

Printed copies are available at: 

• Panania Library and Knowledge Centre - Corner Tower Street and Anderson Avenue, Panania
• Ausgrid: 570 George Street – available at reception in Bathurst Street.

 

REF drop in session

If you have any questions about the REF, members of the project team will be available to discuss the environmental assessment.

Date: Monday 17 September 2018
Time: 5pm to 7pm.
Location: Revesby Workers Club, Grevillea Room
Address: 2B Brett Street, Revesby

No appointment is necessary, just drop in any time during these hours. If this date and time does not suit you, please get in touch with us at any time to ask questions.

Feedback can be submitted via the form on our project web page or by contacting us and we can send you a form. All comments will be considered before the project plans are finalised.
Following the exhibition period, Ausgrid will review and consider all submissions. Ausgrid will then assess the project for approval based on information contained in the REF, the submissions and other relevant documents. Subject to planning approval, construction would start at the end of 2018 and be completed by the end of 2019.

You will receive an update after the environmental assessment is complete and a summary of the submissions will be available on this web page. You can also contact us to request a copy.

Picnic Point to Revesby Cable Project - Review of Environmental Factors (REF)

Appendix A - Drawings and Plans

Appendix B - Consultation Documents

Appendix C - Magentic Field Assessment

Appendix D - Qualitative Noise Assessment

Appendix E - Geotechnical investigations

Appendix F - Arborist report

Ausgrid started engaging with key stakeholders, such as Georges River National Park and City of Canterbury Bankstown Council earlier this year to obtain feedback on the replacement cable route.

Engagement with residents and businesses along and around the replacement cable route started in April 2018 when the first project newsletter was distributed. A copy of the newsletter can be found on the right hand side of this page.

On 26 April 2018, Ausgrid held a community information session at the Revesby Workers Club to seek local information and seek community feedback on the replacement cable route.  Interested community members were invited to attend the session directly through the newsletter, an advertisement in the local newspaper and social media.

At the session, members of the project team gave a short presentation on why the project is needed and what to expect during construction. A copy of the presentation can be found on the bottom of this page.

Thank you to all the community members who attended the session and shared their feedback. All the feedback received from the community will help inform the planning process and will also help us mitigate or avoid impacts during construction.

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).

This project would involve installing the new 132,000 Volt cable and spare conduits through streets in Picnic Point and Revesby. Retiring the existing cables between our substation in Revesby and

Transgrid’s substation in Picnic Point 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.

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 cable equipment
• Disconnecting the cables.