Country Energy’s acting regional general manager North Western, Ben Williams, said the upgrade would ensure the provision of a more dependable and efficient power supply.

The upgrade involves Country Energy crews joining powerlines together in Pandora Street to create a back-up supply for electricity in the case of an unplanned interruption to the town’s power supply, as well as upgrading lines in the area and installing four new switches on the network.

“Crews will create what is called a ‘ring feed’, which will allow us greater flexibility to re-direct electricity during a supply interruption,” Mr Williams said.

“This will help us to minimise outage times during an unplanned interruption and will give us the capability to re-direct power when performing future upgrades and maintenance.”

Powerlines in the area are also being upgraded to specialised insulated cable, which has the ability to carry a greater load of electricity than older lines.

The new lines also provide a more secure supply of power because they are encased in a special outer covering which has the capacity to protect them from potential hazards such as tree branches.

To complete the upgrade new switches will be added to the network which will allow crews to section off powerlines when performing upgrades or maintenance. This will minimise and, in some cases, remove the need for a supply interruption.

Crews from Walgett are currently working on the upgrade which is expected to be complete in May.

Mr Williams said this project was expected to be completed on time as, unlike some other projects in the region, it was not affected by the recent floods.

The refurbishment of the local power infrastructure in the Lightning Ridge area is part of Country Energy’s $700 million commitment to the electricity network in 95 per cent of regional NSW this financial year.