General
7 February, 2026
Drone Technology in Action: Supporting Electricity Network Maintenance in Inglewood and Goondiwindi
Essential Energy is increasing the use of drone technology to inspect electricity network assets across Inglewood, Goondiwindi and the surrounding areas, as part of an ongoing initiative to improve the way the electricity network is managed and maintained across regional, rural and remote New South Wales and parts of Southern Queensland. Utilising new drone technology allows field crews to inspect poles, powerlines and other network infrastructure in a safer, more targeted way.
Residents may notice drones flying overhead in their local area in the coming months. Drone inspections began in January and are expected to continue until July.
These inspections are part of Essential Energy’s broader asset management program, helping crews identify and manage potential defects more efficiently, safely and with minimal disruption to the community.
Jayson Hennessy, Asset Inspection Manager at Essential Energy explains that drones have been transformative to how the network is managed and maintained.
“Using drone technology as part of our asset inspections reduces the need for crews to climb assets or access difficult terrain, reducing risk but also helping us to respond faster to issues that could impact network reliability or safety” says Jayson.
Essential Energy first trialled drones in 2016 and now operates a fleet of over 100 drones. Drones have been a game changer across many different inspection activities, including identifying potential risks and defects on the network, surveying vegetation in remote areas to inspecting communication towers and supporting emergency response after bushfires and floods.
All drone operations are conducted under a Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) licence and follow strict safety and privacy protocols. All drone operations are focused solely on inspecting Essential Energy’s infrastructure and do not involve surveillance or the collection of personal data.
To learn more about drone inspections and how innovation is helping build a safer, more resilient electricity network, visit essentialenergy.com.au/drones
From the fact file:
The network footprint covers 95 per cent of New South Wales and parts of southern Queensland, traversing 737,000 square kilometres of diverse landscape from the desert to the coast, across alpine to sub-tropical. Essential Energy’s footprint includes 1.4 million power poles.
