Duvauchelle to Akaroa pole renewal
Akaroa
Update
We completed this project on 8 March 2022. As we have finished this project ahead of schedule, outages planned for the 10 and 15 March will no longer be required.
Thanks to the local Banks Peninsula community for their patience while we complete these essential works.
Keen to know more?
We've set up a Facebook group for Banks Peninsula residents and we will be posting about this project regularly to this group.
What are we doing?
We are renewing our power poles between Duvauchelle and Akaroa. Some of our poles on this route are reaching the end of their serviceable life. This means that while they are still doing their job, they are nearing retirement.
We will be working on about 115 poles, with some being replaced and others being repaired. The poles are located on private property and next to the road. Some of the poles are located on steep terrain, and we need to do this work in summer as we need dry weather to access the hard to reach places.
The line on the map to the right is the route of the power line Orion is working on. The customers affected by the outages have their power supplied by this line.
What are the benefits?
Orion proactively manages its power network. This means that we are constantly managing and maintaining our lines, poles, and substations. By renewing the poles along this line, we can ensure our network remains reliable for the future.
By replacing older poles in a planned way, we can avoid unplanned outages should a pole come down in a storm. If a pole on this line was to come down in a storm it may take others with it. Repairs in emergency response conditions could take days and see many customers without power during this period.
What are the effects?
The line between Duvauchelle and Akaroa provides power to many of our Banks Peninsula customers. To do this work safely the power needs to be switched off and this means some customers will experience outages while we work. Affected customers will be advised of the planned outages by their electricity retailer.
What are we doing to minimise the effects?
We understand that power outages are inconvenient, and to minimise the effects of the work we have:
- Programmed the works outside the main holiday period
- Scheduled the power outages for during the week – Tuesday to Thursday where possible
- Three crews working on different parts of the line at the same time to get through the work as quickly as possible
- Put generators on the network where we can to keep the power on for customers and for the Akaroa township
We apologise for the extent of the outages. We appreciate it is not ideal, but this work is essential, and we need to get it done before winter hits. We know a lot more people are working from home now, so to be without power is an issue and we apologise for this. If you are working from home, please consider the option of relocating to a friend or co-worker’s property while the power is off. We are operating heavy duty generators to keep the power on in Akaroa. It may be possible for you to relocate there.
Outage details
The location, days and times for planned power outages for this project are provided in our Work Notice .
More information
Our Customer Support Team can be contacted on 0800 363 9898, day or night. We've set up a Facebook group for Banks Peninsula residents and we will be posting about this project regularly here. This FAQ has some useful information about the work that is happening and our website has further information on coping with power outages. If you want to stay in the know about planned outages, sign up to our outage notification service.
