Bass Strait cable finally fixed

The Bass Strait electricity cable has finally been fixed after a problem off the Tasmanian coast sparked an outage in December.

The Bass Strait electricity cable has finally been repaired and successfully tested, operator Basslink says.

The third and final joint of the cable repair has been completed with the entire length of the single piece of cable back on the seabed.

It will be reburied "in the next few days", Basslink chief executive Malcolm Eccles said in a statement on Wednesday.

The cable runs between Tasmania and mainland Australia. It's been out of operation since December due to a fault about 100km off the Tasmanian coast.

An energy market analyst last week estimated the outage had cost the state's economy more than half a billion dollars - although the Tasmanian government disputes that figure.

"The Basslink team will shortly commence a range of land-based tests of both the electricity interconnector as well as the fibre optic telecommunications cable, and all associated equipment on either side of Bass Strait," Mr Eccles said.

"(We hope) to return the electricity interconnector and the telecommunications cable to service before the end of June."

The converter stations at George Town on Tasmania's north coast and Loy Yang in Victoria will also have to be recommissioned.

Tasmanian Energy Minister Matthew Groom says the reconnection is a significant development that "further eases risks associated with energy supply".

"Basslink is now undertaking final testing and recommissioning," Mr Groom said in a statement on Wednesday, adding that "weather permitting" the cable should return to service earlier than previously expected.


Share

2 min read

Published

Source: AAP



Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world