Underground power has already been installed in the following areas under previous SUPP rounds:
- Como – Round One
- South Perth (majority of suburb) - Round Two
- Como east – Round Three
- Salter Point – Round Five
Up to Round Five of the program, proposals were ranked based on their ability to improve network reliability. Non-technical criteria included the commitment of the local government to fund 50 per cent of the project and a sufficient level of community support (at least 50 per cent of respondents to a community survey indicating support for the proposal). The non-technical criteria were ‘pass or fail’ and did not affect the ranking of proposals.
Nominations for projects for Round Six were invited in April 2016. LGAs were asked to nominate projects using set selection criteria, with each nomination assessed against social, economic and technical criteria by the SUPP Steering Committee, who selected projects on behalf of Energy Policy WA (formerly known as the Public Utilities Office).
The City submitted all remaining six areas for assessment – South Perth, Manning, Collier, Kensington east, Kensington west and Hurlingham.
The Round Six project selection process used three selection criteria:
Western Power’s network priorities (50 per cent weighting)
Projects that assist in addressing risk to the electricity network by replacing ageing infrastructure and advancing scheduled maintenance.
Proposals were assessed using a Network Risk Management Tool developed by Western Power.
The proposals that offered the greatest benefits to the network received the highest network priority score.
Local government funding contribution share (25 per cent weighting)
Local governments nominated the percentage of project funding they would pay if the proposal was successful. The minimum threshold for local government funding contribution was 50 per cent.
Project proposals that offered a greater contribution share received a higher funding contribution score.
Demonstrated community support for projects (25 per cent weighting)
A survey was sent to property owners located in the areas covered by the City’s proposals to determine the level of community support. The survey included an estimate of the funding contribution property owners would be asked to pay. For a proposal to be considered for the Program, the survey must have shown at least 50 per cent of respondees supporting paying the estimated cost to underground power. Project proposals with higher percentages of community support received a higher community support score in the selection process.
Evaluation and selection of proposals was an independent process managed by the Program Steering Committee, comprising representatives from the Department of Finance (Energy Policy WA, formerly known as the Public Utilities Office), Western Power and the Western Australian Local Government Association. The process was overseen by an independent probity auditor.
In January 2017, it was announced that Round Six funding had been secured for three City projects - Manning, Collier and South Perth.
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