Electricity Asset Management Plan 2019-2029
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SECTION 5. HOW WE MANAGE THE
LIFECYCLE OF OUR ASSETS
There will be a need for traditional assets across our network for many years to come but we are continually seeking to embrace better ways to grow and improve the network to meet Auckland’s needs, while balancing growth, costs and network resilience. There are powerful forces shaping the energy sector, both here in New Zealand and around the globe. Enveloped in continuous change, planning long-term network investments is more challenging than ever before lending itself to a scenario-based forecast described in Section 1. This section describes our investment proposals for the next 10 years by way of the ‘needs management’ process as described and illustrated in Section 3. Climate change is making network resilience and sustainability more of an imperative in everything we do. We must mitigate and adapt to the physical impacts of climate change as well as the economic impacts associated with decarbonising the economy. Various studies point to the high likelihood that extreme rainfall, severe droughts, wildfires and strong winds could hit Auckland in years to come. Those parts of the network whose resilience is doubtful will need investment to ride out these storms and this particularly applies to ageing overhead networks in areas known to be exposed to high winds. We also have an issue with small- diameter conductors that are showing an increasing rate of failure. Our investment proposals will help us achieve our service-level targets by addressing both current and forecasted performance issues 14 and they will help us realise our network vision as described in Section 1. The capital investment proposals in this section also align with our asset management strategies as described in Section 4. Furthermore, our focus will move from a reactive approach to proactive approach where replacement and refurbishment are undertaken as proactive programmes of work informed by our CBARM models, condition assessments and criticality. Our projects are categorised in this section as three main groups namely: Network Development programmes, Operate, Maintain, Renew and Replace programmes and Non-Network (Information Systems or Digital) projects and programmes of work. Projects comprise both standalone projects, where investment is focused on a specific asset and need, and programmes of work where a series of projects address the same need in different locations in the network or deliver an enabling need. Our proposals for capital investment are described in the following way in this section: Need: The need sets out how the project is aligned with our service-level targets (see Section 2). It also addresses any shortfalls in performance and strategies (see Section 4) or specific needs. Any risks relating to the network’s ongoing performance are also highlighted. The close alignment with service levels ensures projects are in accordance with our asset management objectives. Targeted Outcomes: The targeted outcomes describe seven drivers/outcomes that our projects and programmes of work should address and support. Each project or programme of work contained in the section below has a table in which the drivers and targets that relate to that project are clearly marked. Options considered: Viable options to address individual needs are set out in an options table for each proposed capital investment project or programme of work. Where applicable, options consider non-network solutions and innovations, and investment deferral. The options table includes the expected cost of the preferred option and the reason for choosing it, and rejecting others, plus the post-investment risk.
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14 See Section 2 for details of performance issues
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