Energy watchdog’s legal move over outback outage
Robyn Wuth |
A major power supplier faces millions of dollars in fines as the energy watchdog launches court action after outback communities were crippled by storms without electricity and communications for days.
Severe thunderstorms brought down transmission towers connecting outback towns to the national electricity grid in October 2024, leaving 20,000 residents in far western NSW without electricity for six days.
Faulty backup generators were offline, and energy operator Transgrid failed to provide redundancy plans to reconnect residents, disrupting emergency responses across the region.
“One generator was unavailable due to maintenance and the other experienced multiple outages, resulting in 12,700 properties in Broken Hill and surrounding areas being left without power intermittently until 31 October 2024,” the Australian Energy Regulator alleges in its Federal Court action.
It claims Transgrid breached licensing conditions by failing to maintain the network and restore power within a reasonable time frame.
The regulator also alleges Transgrid continued to fail residents by failing to establish and maintain its backup generators from November 2022 to October 2025.
“The power disruptions in October 2024 had far-reaching and serious impacts across the Broken Hill region, especially given its geographical isolation,” said regulator chair Clare Savage
“It’s absolutely critical that network service providers are prepared to adequately manage and maintain electricity supply.”
The regulator is seeking a significant financial penalty against the supplier, which could amount to millions of dollars, as well as costs.
Transgrid has confirmed it will co-operate with any findings and has worked closely to develop solutions.
“Since the extreme weather event last year, we have worked closely with local and state government stakeholders on securing a sustainable, long-term solution for energy security and reliability for communities in Far West NSW,” a Transgrid spokesman told AAP.
“We have worked collaboratively and transparently with the AER and IPART (NSW Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal) over the past year and will continue to facilitate the best possible outcomes for consumers as we work to provide long-term, sustainable energy solutions for the people of NSW.”
AAP
