Powercor fined $2.1m for bushfire, safety breaches

The blaze scorched about 185 hectares of land, destroying sheds, fences and farming equipment.

Energy Safe Victoria chief executive Leanne Hughson said Powercor had neglected its duty to minimise the hazards and risks of its electricity network.

"Victoria is one of the most bushfire-prone areas in the world and electricity companies have a duty to prioritise public safety and minimise fire risks," Ms Hughson said in a statement. 

The charges related to more than 4800 failures to inspect encroaching vegetation in bushfire risk areas, 140 failures to cut back vegetation Powercor knew was too close to its power lines and one charge in relation to the Glenmore fire.

"The length of un-inspected lines was roughly the distance from Melbourne to Sydney – that's an inexcusable failure and unacceptable risk to a lot of people's safety," Ms Hughson said. 

"As the Glenmore fire showed, neglecting even one span of electric line can have dire consequences." 

In sentencing, Magistrate Amina Bhai noted Powercor's early guilty plea but rejected its claim the offending was at the lower end of the scale.

She noted it was not the first time Powercor infrastructure had caused a bushfire, and the distributor has previously been prosecuted for failing to clear vegetation near powerlines after fires in Rochester, Strathmerton, and Port Campbell in 2018.

In an April hearing, the court was told Powercor had scrapped plans to trim vegetation below its lines 10 days before the fire, despite a year-old recommendation by one of its own inspectors.

The maximum possible fine for the offending was more than $3.8 million.

In sentencing submissions to the court, prosecutor Andrew Woods had described the offending as "very serious" and said any fine should not be seen as simply the cost of doing business.

Powercor has been contacted for comment.