Transpower threats typical, say farmers

Farmers believe Transpower's threat to take legal action if denied access to its power lines on farms will only make the situation worse.

The national grid operator came out fighting after Auckland farmers threatened to block crews from entering their land until the company agreed to pay compensation or rental for power towers on private land.

Transpower in turn threatened legal action and said police had been called in similar situations in the past.

Auckland Federated Farmers spokesman John Sexton said the company's reaction was typical.

"It's Transpower's whole attitude, their threat over legal action is just exactly what we're going on about," he said. "It's the sort of comment that will only antagonise farmers even more."

Transpower plans a $10 million "uprating" project, starting in November, that would allow existing lines to carry higher loads. More tension will be put into the lines and crews will need access to do the work.

The project involves hundreds of kilometres of lines from Whakamaru to Otahuhu.

Auckland and Waikato Federated Farmers say the project is a major upgrade rather than maintenance and they should be paid. A meeting between farmers and Transpower is scheduled next month over the issue.

Mr Sexton said farmers wanted the same compensation anyone with a cellphone tower would get - anything from $5000 to $12,000 a year.

"That's what we're basing our costings on but Transpower has grown up with free access and they just can't adjust to change," he said.

Mr Roberts said there was nothing legally stopping the company paying rental but it was unlikely to be approved by the Electricity Commission or the Commerce Commission.

If Transpower paid $5000 a year for its 42,000 towers and poles, the cost would be $210 million a year and consumers would end up paying.

"We have to justify every dollar we spend. We would have difficulty explaining why we were making payments when we were not directly required to do so," he said.

Of 980 pylons involved in the uprating project, earthworks were needed around 35.