The annual national awards celebrate the unsung heroes of utilities and this year the power operator has been recognised for its hard work during the storms this winter, fault support and its work to help a Stockport community reduce their energy usage.

Shortlisted for the Big Bang Award for Innovation, Electricity North West’s Fault Support Centre, along with partners Kelvatek, has revolutionised the way low voltage faults which cause power cuts to homes and businesses are located and repaired. Using specially developed ‘smart’ fuses installed on the power network engineers can pinpoint the location of faults, repair them quickly and reduce disruption delivering huge benefits to people across the North West.

The Power Saver Challenge project has been shortlisted for the Constellation Awards for collaborative work with a customer community. The project successfully helped 250 residents in Stockport reduce their energy usage by 10% saving an approximate £50 on the average household electricity bill.

The remaining awards credit Electricity North West for its efforts during Storm Desmond, which caused widespread disruption and the loss of power to 75,000 customers in Cumbria and Lancashire. More than 500 engineers worked 24 hours a day to repair the damage, 20,000 sandbags were distributed and 22,000 free hot meals were provided.

Engineer Kevin Anderson has been shortlisted for the Hero Award for his remarkable dedication and contribution during the storms. Using his experience from the 2005 Carlisle floods, he advised the control room of the situation on the ground and made quick and safe decisions to restore power to customers in extremely difficult conditions.

Steve Johnson, CEO for Electricity North West, said: “This recognition for our commitment and dedication to our customers during the storms and also helping to reduce their energy usage, is a fantastic achievement.

“We pride ourselves on delivering the best service to our customers and to say that we’re delighted to be shortlisted for these prestigious awards would be an understatement.”

Kevin Anderson, lead delivery engineer based in Carlisle, said: “This winter was extremely challenging and my colleagues and myself worked in extremely difficult conditions to repair the extensive damage and restore power to customers as quickly and safely as possible.

“It’s great to be recognised in this way and I’m honoured to be shortlisted.”

To find out more about how Electricity North West restored power during Storm Desmond click here and for more information about the Power Saver Challenge watch this quick video.

Winners will be announced at the Utility Week Star Awards on 17 June at the Hilton Manchester, Deansgate.

Shortlisted for:

• Big Bang Award for Innovation - The Fault Support Centre team, Electricity North West / Kelvatek
• Constellation Awards for collaborative work with a customer community - The Power Saver Challenge
• Customer Culture Award - The Communications and Call Centre teams
• Hero Award – Individual - Kevin Anderson
• Hero Award – Team - TVS Supply Chain Solutions in partnership with Electricity North West