Transpower's $5.5 million investment to improve the reliability of Hawke's Bay's electricity supply is needed because extreme weather events are happening more often, says Unison Group chief executive Ken Sutherland.
"Hawke's Bay customers have been impacted by several significant weather events in the past few years, such as snow storms, severe winds, and lightning strikes," he said.
In May 15,000 customers were without power due to Cyclone Cook, with some waiting nearly a week for power to be restored due to wind-blown debris shorting lines.
In January winds up to 160km/h downed power lines and in August last year dozens of power poles were brought down between Napier and Taupo by snow, leaving many people without electricity for several days.
Transpower general manager of grid performance Jim Tocher said records showed extreme weather events appeared to be increasing in frequency, with four "substantial" events between 2012 and 2016.