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Parliamentary Questions


Question On Notice No. 614 asked in the Legislative Assembly on 15 November 2022 by Dr D.J. Honey

Question Directed to the: Minister for Energy
Parliament: 41 Session: 1


Question

I refer to the large-scale portable backup generators used to power towns like Quairading in the event of an outage, and I ask:
(a) What categories of these larger scale portable generators in Kilo Volt Amperes (KVA) ranges are available to be deployed by Western Power in the event of outages;
(b) Where are these large generators stored;
(c) How many such generators has Western Power had in each year from 2016/17 to 2021/22; and
(d) What matters are considered in the process of deciding to send a generator to a particular location in response to a power outage?

Answered on 14 February 2023

(a) High Voltage Injection Units (HVIUs) are used to power towns like Quairading. A High Voltage Injection Unit is a 2000 kilo Volt Amp step-up transformer with high voltage and low voltage switchgear. It supplies power at 22,000 Volts or 33,000 Volts.

(b) Western Power’s HVIUs are stored at Western Power's Forrestfield Depot when not in service.

(c) The quantity and size of Western Power’s HVIU fleet is listed below

 

2016/17

2017/18

2018/19

2019/20

2020/21

2021/22

Year to Date

2022/23

 

High Voltage Injection Units (HVIU)

 

2000 kVA HVIU mobile

1

2

2

2

2

2

2

 

2000 kVA HVIU fixed

0

0

0

0

1

1

1

 

Total HVIU

1

2

2

2

3

3

3

 

 

(d)    Western Power follows a standard operating procedure when deciding to dispatch a generator in response to a power outage.

 

Western Power will always prioritise public safety and respond to reported hazards first before power can be restored. The decision to dispatch a generator is based upon the following factors:

·         Estimated time to repair the network compared to generator deployment time. In most circumstances it will be faster to restore the network rather than dispatching a generator.

·         Availability of resources including staff to transport and operate the Emergency Response Generator, materials to repair the underlying fault and consideration of fatigue management.

·         Impact of the outage on vital locations, key third-party infrastructure sites or sensitive customers such as hospitals or customers with life support equipment.