The Victorian Government has released its response to the Network Outage Review, supporting all 19 recommendations in full, in part or in principle.
The State Government initiated the independent Network Outage Review following an extreme weather event in February 2024, which caused widespread damage to around 12,000km of powerlines lines, and left more than 531,000 customers off power supply at its peak.
The Victorian Government said implementing the recommendations will ensure Victoria’s privately-owned electricity transmission and distribution businesses are better equipped to prevent, prepare for and respond to severe weather events.
The review was led by an Independent Expert Panel, which met with affected communities and ensured that the electricity businesses heard firsthand the experiences of those impacted.
In response to the review, the State Government said it will strengthen oversight and accountability of electricity businesses, by requiring them to report on their emergency risk management practices annually, including emergency resources, systems, processes and arrangements with contractors to do repair works.
The Victorian Government said it will help Victorians impacted by prolonged outages get access to emergency funds sooner, with the Extended Loss of Supply Support Payment Scheme (ELOSS Payment) to require distribution businesses to financially support customers during prolonged power outages after 72 hours.
The final design of the scheme and payment amounts will be subject to consultation.
The State Government said it will also formalise resource sharing arrangements between all network businesses to ensure they have the right staff in the right place for a quick response to outages and reduce restoration times for customers.
Distribution businesses will also have to participate in Regional Emergency Management Planning Committees and participate in emergency exercises to test implementation of these recommendations from the 13 February 2024 event.
Victorian Minister for Energy and Resources, Lily D’Ambrosio, said, “We’re making sure privately-owned power companies put Victorians first when responding to storm events and make reconnecting Victorians to power supply their priority.
“These changes make sure privately-owned power companies are ready to respond, involving them in emergency planning early and ensuring they have enough resources in the right places to undertake emergency repairs.”
Victorian Member for Monbulk, Daniela De Martino, said, ‘We’ve gone to communities, we’ve listened to them, and we’ve built a plan to drive better outcomes for Victorians to ensure the resilience of our transmission network and power is restored as quickly as possible after storm events.”
