The completion of the Observatory and Bellevue substation project is expected to reduce outages
63-year-old faulty oil cables were unearthed between the Observatory and Bellevue substations
The Observatory and Bellevue substations’ power woes are finally over following the completion of the high tension cable replacement and transformer reinstatement projects.
The MMC for Environment and Infrastructure Services, Jack Sekwaila announced on October 31 that the completion marked a pivotal milestone in improving the region’s network infrastructure and service for inner-city residents and businesses.
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“After the fire broke out in December 2023, damaging the Observatory substation and its network, we presented short, medium, and long-term plans to address the intermittent power supply challenges brought by that unfortunate incident. We have delivered on all the promises we made to our residents, starting with installing interconnector cables to completely rehabilitate the affected substation,” said Sekwaila.
As a response to the damaged infrastructure, City Power implemented a series of measures to address the ongoing outage challenges which included the installation of interconnector cables between the two substations. This enabled City Power to reinstate supply earlier than expected and part of the long-term solutions involved complete rehabilitation of the substation and the installation of two new cables.
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This critical emergency project of replacing two 88kV oil cables was part of City Power’s plan to modernise and reinforce the electrical network between the two substations.
Last month, City Power isolated the overhead lines between Observatory and Bellevue substations, to start preparing for the underground cable connections to the network. This came after the teams completed the process of unearthing 63-year-old faulty oil cables and successfully laying new ones.
“We can confirm that the Observatory substation’s 88/11kV transformer was successfully restored and is currently being energised. Additionally, at the Bellevue substation, the load is operational on the 11/88 kV system, and transformers 3 and 4 have been energised.”
The completion of this project is expected to improve electrical performance and reduce outages significantly.
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