St Heliers Works (OIP)
Location: St Heliers, Auckland
Start date: February 2023
Completion date: August 2023
The St Heliers OIP (Overhead to Underground Power) project began in February 2023, with the aim of undergrounding distribution lines in the St Heliers area. The joint venture between Vector and Entrust, encompassing approximately 2.8km of streets, aimed to enhance safety and reliability of the power infrastructure as well as improve the view for local residents.
Our challenge
Northpower’s role in the project involved undergrounding 11kV and 400V distribution lines, including private service connections. Alongside Northpower, other contractors were engaged to install new streetlight poles and deliver the civil works required for undergrounding the existing overhead Chorus network.
Throughout the project, we worked alongside a number of key stakeholders, including Vector, Entrust, Stockman General (civil works and traffic management), Wells Electrical (service main conversions), Cole Electrical (street lighting installation), UGL (Chorus works) and Arbourlab (tree works monitoring).
Undergrounding works began in Waitara Road and progressed to Glover Road. HV cabling installations and three shutdowns took place in August, alongside residential customer changeovers completed by Wells and Northpower. Remaining LV cable installations and new streetlight installations also took place during this time.
Installing the transformer
A new 300 KVA mini substation was then installed, involving the removal of an old transformer and extending the transformer easement. Civil works were completed by Powerhouse Civil and Norscot.
Because this project was undertaken in heavily built up urban areas, public safety was a key focus, as well as maintaining a positive customer experience by ensuring the job site was kept tidy and neighbours were well informed of the works and progress. Adherence to regulations and Vector Standards, and environmental protection was also monitored closely throughout the project.
Community feedback
Regular communication and site cleanliness helped to mitigate disruptions and positive feedback was received from residents and the public, which was a successful outcome for the project.
The St Heliers OIP project is a great example of effective collaboration between Northpower and other key stakeholders. Through detailed planning, regular communication, and commitment to safety, the project successfully delivered significant improvements to the St Heliers area, and was completed within agreed project timelines.
