Transmission and Distribution

Electricity transmission

Powerlink Queensland, a Government Owned Corporation, manages the transmission of electricity in Queensland. Powerlink is licensed to operate more than 12,000 kilometres of Queensland's high voltage transmission network, transporting electricity from the generators to the distribution networks and directly to large customers such as aluminium smelters.

Powerlink has approximately $583 million in major transmission projects underway in Queensland and it is forecast that an additional $2.6 billion will be spent in the State over the next five years.

Most of the power stations in the east coast network are directly connected to the Queensland transmission system. Electricity also flows between Queensland and New South Wales via the large capacity Queensland-New South Wales Interconnector (QNI) and the smaller Terranora interconnector.

Electricity distribution

Electricity in Queensland is supplied to most customers via an electricity distribution system, which connects the high voltage transmission system to individual premises.

Queensland has around 1.8 million industrial, commercial and domestic consumers of electricity. These consumers are serviced by ENERGEX (who supplies customers in south-east Queensland), Ergon Energy (who supplies rural and regional Queensland) and Country Energy (a NSW distributor whose supply area extends over the border).

Queensland's electricity distribution networks are extensive with a total line length of approximately 200,000 kilometres. ENERGEX has 50,000 kilometers of powerlines and half a million power poles. Ergon Energy's network consists of more than 150,000 kilometres of powerlines and one million power poles and covers an area six times the size of Victoria.