Underground power and service connections across Sydney.

We disconnect the overhead service at the pole, trench from the pole base or the nearest network pit to your building, lay conduit and cable underground, terminate into the switchboard, test and energise, then remove the old aerial service and the point of attachment hardware off the wall. It's all done by Thorntek as the accredited Level 2 ASP, and we lodge the network approval and the compliance certificate. Most domestic conversions are a one to two day job depending on the run length and the surface we have to reinstate.

The network sets a minimum depth and cover for the trench, and it varies with where the run goes — under a garden bed is different to under a driveway, which needs deeper cover and often a heavier conduit. We dig to the right depth for each section, bed the conduit in sand, and lay orange marker tape above it so anyone digging there later gets a warning before they reach the cable. The depth gets recorded in the photos we send you before the trench is backfilled.

Both. We set out and dig the trench, lay the conduit and cable, build any pits, backfill in compacted layers, and reinstate the surface — concrete, pavers or turf — so it reads as a finished job. We work in clean, stable ground; if we strike contaminated soil, uncontrolled fill or asbestos material we stop and flag it, because that has to be handled by the right licensed people before cable goes in.

Get it on the radar early. The permanent underground supply needs to be in before occupation, and the trench and conduit are easiest to run before the driveway and landscaping go in. Thorntek works to your builder’s program, coordinates around the slab and the meter position, lays the conduit and consumer mains at the right depth, builds the service pit and lodges the new connection so the supply is ready when the trades need it.

Yes. Level 2 ASP 4869 covers underground, overhead and metering across both Ausgrid (Sydney CBD, Eastern Suburbs, Inner West, North Shore and Northern Beaches) and Endeavour Energy (the Hills, Greater Western Sydney, Penrith, South Western Sydney, Hawkesbury and the Blue Mountains). One accredited contractor for the full underground scope, every approval lodged by us.

Yes. A secondary dwelling, granny flat or studio usually needs its own supply or a properly sized sub-main run underground from the main switchboard. We size the cable for the distance and the load, trench and lay the conduit, set a pit if the run needs one, terminate into a sub-board, and test and certify it. If the second dwelling needs its own metered connection from the network rather than a sub-main, we handle that as a new connection and lodge it.

For a straight overhead to underground conversion, the supply is only off for the changeover window — once the trench, conduit and cable are in and tested, we isolate at the pole, terminate the new underground run, and bring you back on, usually inside the same day. New connections on a build are energised once, so there’s no existing supply to interrupt. For anything involving a switchboard upgrade at the same time we quote the outage window upfront so you can plan around it.

Every underground job starts with a free site inspection, because the price turns on the run length, the depth, the surface we have to dig through and reinstate, and the cable size the load needs. You get a fixed-price quote in writing before any work begins, with no surprises on the invoice. Tell us where the switchboard is and where the supply comes in, or call 1300 58 58 16 to book the inspection.