Projects

The Malekula Transmission Line was awarded as a part of the Vanuatu Brenwe Hydropower Station as there was no infrastructure in place to carry power from the new Brenwe Hydropower station to the existing grid and 9 new villages (populations between 200 and 2500), and MAP were one of the few contractors with the capabilities to complete a quality job.

The project was jointly funded by the Asian Development bank and the Vanuatu government as part of the Vanuatu Energy Access Projects initiative, which aims to increase access to renewable energy on Malekula.

Big shout out to Construction Partner Independent Line Services (ILS) who provided the design effort and the technical skills and training for the Conductor install in this similarly challenging and remote environment. Consortium Partner Vortex also delivered the Electrical works at the Lakatoro diesel station and final commissioning of the Scheme.

The project involved the installation of over 590 power poles across approximately 42km of challenging terrain on Malekula. ILS supported the training of around 25 Ni-Vanuatu and our supervising Expat team in Malekula because this was our first time installing transmission power lines of this scale.

Challenging key tasks on this project involved the safe felling of large native trees, one of which would have exceeded 4m in diameter, working at heights to hang the conductor and also the complex logistics of getting the imported eucalyptus poles and all components to island.

Some people might call power lines an eye sore but as Aussie legend, Darryl Kerrigan would say, “Power lines are a reminder of man’s ability to generate power”.