Water delivery
We will seek every additional water supply opportunity, create strong commercial incentives for water demand, and maximise the volume of water available to our customers and the efficiency water we source and deliver.
We take pride in providing irrigation water to over 2,400 farms owned by 1,700 family farm businesses in southern NSW. Water is supplied through almost 3,000km of energy efficient, gravity fed, earthen channels to an area of almost 750,000ha.
To access the water ordering system and customer portal use your customer number and secure PIN via our website.
Alternatively, to place water orders via the telephone call 1300 781 431.
Service levels
We provides a seven-day water delivery service to customers. This means that our customers are able to make starts, finishes, increases and reductions to water deliveries on all days including weekends and public holidays.
New infrastructure installed as part of the PIIOP project now allows us to deliver two types of service levels to customers.
- Remote Control – Standard Level of Service – Two changes per day.
- Automation – High Level of Service – multiple changes per day.
Customers are being notified of their ability to access these improved levels of service as part of our operationalising and testing. Outlets not upgraded as part of the PIIOP program are now referred to as Manual Outlets and will require a different management regime under automation.
As such the following service level will be provided to Manual Outlets:
- One change per day (the change time will likely be different each day)
- From 2018/19 season requests for starts/changes on weekends will incur a fee (TBD) to cover the cost of sending a staff member to the site
Water ordering
Customers should ensure that water orders are placed at least four days in advance to guarantee delivery.
This means that orders lodged after 6.30am effectively require at least five days’ notice.
Examples include:
- A water order lodged at 6.17am (i.e. before 6.30am) on Tuesday to start an outlet will result in the outlet being started four days later on Saturday
- A water order lodged at 2.27pm (i.e. after 6.30am) on Tuesday to start an outlet will result in the outlet being started five days later on Sunday
During channel refilling at the start of the irrigation season, irrigation water may not be available within the normal four-day notice period due to the need to fill empty and/or low sections of channel.
Customers are encouraged to provide as much notice as possible about their requirements in order to limit the risk of our team not being able to deliver water on the day it was ordered.
The requirement for a four day advance order time is due to the fact that it takes four days for water that is released from Hume Dam (upstream of Albury) to arrive at Lake Mulwala where our Mulwala Canal Offtake is located (note: the four-day advance water order requirement also applies to the Wakool Canal Offtake).
Water may be ordered via logging into the water ordering system or using the IVR telephone system.
Restriction of supply
In some circumstances, it may be necessary for us to apply restricted supply rates to customer water orders as a result of operational constraints and/or needs such as channel capacity limits.
When we needs to apply restricted supply rates we will do so in accordance with our Distribution Rules Policy (unless otherwise negotiated with customers (e.g. rescheduling)).
Key aspects of these arrangements include:
- The distribution of available water in proportion to flow shares
- The application of flow rate limits (for outlets)
- Landholdings are generally entitled to one flow share, except in cases where subdivisions and amalgamations have been carried out, or a reconfiguration has occurred
System maintenance
Planned maintenance
Where we are required to conduct planned maintenance to our water distribution system that may cause an interruption of service delivery, we will inform affected customers of the time and duration of any planned service delivery interruption at least seven days in advance.
System faults
Customers who have concerns regarding the condition of their channels and our ability to meet their irrigation supply requirements are encouraged to contact our Customer Support team on 1300 138 265.
Unplanned maintenance
Where we are required to conduct any form of unplanned maintenance to our water distribution system, that may cause an interruption of service delivery to customers, we will aim to rectify the situation as soon as reasonably possible to ensure service delivery interruption is minimised.