Power line builder changes course to bypass Riverina town

Transgrid this week said it had "modified" its preferred route for VNI West in NSW following feedback from communities and landowners.

Transgrid is plotting the controversial route of VNI West with Transmission Company Victoria to connect the national grid with renewable projects like wind and solar farms in rural areas.

Victoria's section of the power line project has been narrowed down from a route 50km wide down to 2km wide.

Despite the lack of co-operation from many angry landowners, TCV aims to whittle the planned route down over the next two years to a final 70 metre-120 metre easement to locate the 500 kilovolt double-circuit overhead transmission line with towers about 80 metres high.

VNI West will connect with EnergyConnect in NSW at the Dinawan substation at Coleambally and the Western Renewables Link in Victoria at the Bulgana substation north of Stawell in Victoria.

The entire project is expected to cost around $3.6 billion for the 800km power line.

Transgrid this week said the "significant" change in its planned route was to move the proposed transmission line further away from Moulamein.

The Riverina town, population around 500, is to have a 6km buffer from the power line.

Transgrid released its draft route plans in January outlining four options.

Project director Colin Mayer said the proximity of the preferred route to the Moulamein township was consistently raised as a concern by members of the community as well as potential impacts on agriculture and biodiversity.

He said the route shift also reduced potential impacts on irrigated agricultural farming operations plus decreased the number of impacted landowners from 12 to five in that section.

Another change was to create a "bubble" of up to 10km wide at the project's southern end near the Murray River crossing point into Victoria at Cobramunga, which is across the river from Murrabit.

Transgrid says it wants to allow discussions to continue with TCV to determine a specific crossing point on the river.

TCV has already bought a 360ha farm at Tragowel, near Kerang, for its new electricity terminal station as part of the transmission line project.

"The land purchase does not pre-empt the location of the final easement for the transmission line," TCV said.

One other changes to Transgrid's preferred route was to widen its corridor by up to 3km near Dinawan to "allow flexibility to find a pathway for the transmission line through future renewable energy developments".

In reference to avoidance of agriculture as part of the route, Transgrid said the new preferred preferred route avoided some of the previously impacted productive agricultural land.

"However, some farms will still be impacted by the final preferred route," the power company said.

"In these cases, we will work with individual landowners to minimise and manage impacts on their land, where possible.

"For example, we will try, where possible, to run the final 70-metre transmission line easement directly along fence lines between adjacent cropping paddocks, rather than diagonally across them."

Transgrid said they would work with affected landowners "to ensure they are fairly compensated for any land value and agricultural production loss"

The company said this would be "in addition" to already announced payments each year of $10,000 for every kilometre of new transmission line on a property (indexed to CPI) over 20 years.