WA Government Awards $342M in Contracts for Major Transmission Network Upgrade
The Western Australian Government has announced a $342 million investment in electricity transmission infrastructure—the state’s largest in over a decade—aimed at unlocking more renewable energy capacity from the Mid West.
Contracts have been awarded to three major contractors: UGL Engineering, ACCIONA, and GenusPlus Group. The work is part of the Clean Energy Link – North project, which involves expanding and upgrading the northern section of the South West Interconnected System (SWIS). This upgrade includes new high-capacity transmission lines, substations, terminals, and transformers.
Once completed, the project will enable the connection of up to 1.4 gigawatts of renewable energy, equivalent to powering approximately 500,000 homes. The added capacity surpasses the output of WA’s two largest coal-fired power stations, Muja D and Collie, and plays a vital role in supporting the state’s plan to phase out coal-fired generation by 2030.
GenusPlus secured $120 million of the work, including a $60 million extension to its existing contract with Western Power and a $65 million award for ongoing overhead maintenance across the network. UGL Engineering, under CIMIC, received $114 million to provide EPC services and key terminal upgrades at Three Springs and Neerabup. ACCIONA also secured a contract and continues to be active in WA’s renewable energy sector.
Energy Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson said this initiative marks the beginning of accelerated infrastructure planning to facilitate future clean energy generation. Further phases of investment are expected to be announced later this year.
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