Lack of power preventing businesses from moving to TRANSlink Precinct

Owner of The Rodman Group, Leigh Rodman, said his business had come to a point where they had outgrown their current south Launceston site.

"We had been searching around and found the land at Western Junction, but unfortunately it seems to be stalled by power issues; we don't know where to go or what to do," Mr Rodman said.

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According to a 2019 brochure on the TRANSlink precinct from the office of the Coordinator-General, electricity supply was available to all land titles in the precinct with a 22 kilovolt distribution line from the Hadspen substation.

It also said there was a backup supply via a 22 kilovolt feeder from the Norwood substation, and that the precinct also benefited from a large proportion of the electricity mains being underground.

At its current size, The Rodman Group currently uses around 400 megawatts to power their factory, and an upgrade at the new location would require 1500 megawatts to operate at full capacity.

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Mr Rodman said he wanted to at least triple their production.

"We're in a residential area here so we're we're limited as to the time we can work," he said.

"We've got one machine down and there's no way of picking the time up when you were not allowed to work outside certain hours."

Michael Hudson, owner of Hudson Civil Contracts, said they bought land "in good faith" thinking there was enough power on site, but found it wasn't the case.

"We've also found that there's no infrastructure available to increase that power supply; we've been waiting six months for an answer," Mr Hudson said.

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"The coordinator-general's brochure clearly states that there's enough power on the site, state growth have gone into bat for us and we've just not heard anything back at all."

Labor member for Bass Michelle O'Byrne said accessing energy infrastructure was a "massive blocker" to building businesses in Tasmania.

"The government's got to start addressing that this new site of Western Junction has the opportunity for a number of businesses to create more jobs, and create more value to our economy," Ms O'Byrne said.

"People are limited by a government failing to invest in an area that they know they can fix."

The state government was approached for comment and did not respond.

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