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Overall it's all happening too slowly meanwhile existing generation is wearing out.

That's the basic problem and it's not helped by "missing links" in the chain and various enthusiasts, perhaps well intentioned, who overstate what's being achieved and thus lead the public into thinking all's well.

As a case in point, and this has a lot of relevance to those solar farms in Victoria, is transmission development and the opposition to a new major line from the north to the south. The following map will highlight the situation.

Yellow = 500kV

Orange = 330kV

Blue = 220kV

Brown = 66kV

Pink = 275kV to / from SA

Light orange = 400kV DC to / from Tasmania

Red in NSW = 132kV

Note the building symbols on the map are major substations not necessarily power stations (eg many are supplying load).

[ATTACH=full]171787[/ATTACH]

Noting that the transmission in the north is already heavily utilised for hydro generation, that's what it was built for, and that includes both the Snowy scheme, with transmission on the 330kV lines, and the various AGL owned stations connected at 220kV.

On this map the symbols are generation only:

[ATTACH=full]171788[/ATTACH]

The 220 and 330kV lines were primarily built to connect hydro generation as well as supply to regional Victoria with the additional benefit that their construction brought about the interconnection of Victoria and NSW since 1959. That's the reason for the route of those lines crossing lakes and so on, it was simply to run past all the hydro sites.

So there just isn't a huge amount of spare capacity up there to be adding generation to. A bit of spare, since transmission did allow for future development of some hydro in the area that has never been built, but not a lot.

Hence the idea to build major new transmission north - south in Victoria but suffice to say there's plenty of opposition to it.

Separate to that, one of the 500kV lines west of Melbourne back in service and has been since Sunday evening. It's been put back up on temporary towers - not ideal but it returns one of the two damaged lines it to service until permanent rebuilding can be done. It's a temporary fix but will do for now.