WA Energy Minister, Mike Nahan, is encouraging local governments to submit project proposals for the next round of funding from the State Underground Power Program.
The State Underground Power Program is a partnership between the Government of Western Australia, Western Power/Horizon Power and local governments where overhead power lines in established areas are placed underground.
Under new arrangements for the six round of funding, local governments are able to nominate the proportion of funding they are willing to pay, in a bid to make their proposal more competitive.
Community support for the proposal and the potential for the projects to improve the security of the electricity network will also be factors taken into considered during the selection process.
“I encourage local governments to take advantage of the funding available and Western Power’s expertise in successfully delivering these highly popular projects,” Mr Nahan said.
“The new arrangements will allow more underground projects to be undertaken, with greater benefits in the security and reliability of the State’s electricity system.”
Mr Nahan said the State Underground Power Program is one of Western Australia’s most successful energy policy initiatives.
The State Government has committed $30million over the next three years to the program, which has proven very popular.
“About 55 per cent of the Perth metropolitan area is now underground because of this program,” Mr Nahan said.
“That means more than 86,000 homes have received underground power over the lifetime of the program.”
The deadline to lodge a project proposals is March 31 2016.
