6 things you should know about TLC's Kuratau line upgrade

18 January 2021

Stage two of The Lines Company’s (TLC) Kuratau line renewal and substation upgrade is set to begin in February.

1. This stage is a part of the $1.4 million of improvements being made by TLC to improve the lines and substation servicing over 1,600 customers on the western side of Lake Taupō. These            improvements will increase supply reliability, reduce outages and speed up restoration time.

2. This stage will see a second transformer installed and livened at the Kuratau substation. This new transformer is already on site in preparation for the project to begin.

Once livened, the transformer will provide a backup to the existing transformer when it is out of service for maintenance or an unplanned outage occurs.

3. Site preparation work such as transformer testing will begin in mid-February and will cause no impact to customers. Electrical protection and control systems will also be upgrade.

TLC’s GM Network Mike Fox said a project decision was made to install a temporary connection at the substation to allow the construction phase to continue without customer                        interruption.

4. Affected customers can expect to receive their usual mailed notification of when the outage will affect them, which at this stage can be expected at the end of March.

5. Work on this stage will begin in mid-February and completion is expected at the end of March.

6. TLC’s team is completing design work for an upgrade to the line supplying the Kuratau area. The upgraded line will provide a backup supply to some areas of Kuratau reducing the duration of unplanned outages. Construction work is expected to commence later this year.