Gippsland Water aims to future-proof its network against an increasingly volatile climate, investing $6.8 million in 25 new generators to keep water services running during extreme weather events.
The move comes as recent storms, heatwaves, and bushfires have highlighted the critical need for reliable backup power to protect both infrastructure and customers.
Gippsland Water Managing Director Sarah Cumming said that extreme weather events in recent years highlighted the demand to invest in generators.
“In recent years we’ve seen more extreme weather events in our service area than ever before. These events have caused downed power lines, widespread power outages and damage to infrastructure,” she said.
“These new generators provide a backup for those sorts of scenarios and ultimately reduce the likelihood of services being affected.”
Cumming said Gippsland Water had selected sites based on the vulnerability of the surrounding electricity network and the number of customers connected, including a particular focus on sites in bushfire prone areas.
“Power outages have the potential to take key assets like pump stations offline and by extension, affect our ability to keep water and wastewater services running,” she said.
“As always, our priority is to make sure we can provide safe drinking water to people’s taps and reliable wastewater services year-round.”
When not being used for power outages, the generators can support the national grid, creating revenue for the organisation, which puts further downward pressure on customer bills.
