Electricity provider Network Waitaki is confident it can keep up with the power demands of the district's growing population, despite already having issues providing electricity at peak load times.
During the summer peak of the irrigation season, Network Waitaki has to control irrigation loads, but government statistics, released on Monday, show the population of the Waitaki district could grow from between 100 and 700 people in the next four years, and could swell by more than 1500 by 2021.
Network Waitaki chief executive Graham Clark said the company was aware of the irrigation issue and was working hard to resolve it, but added that population growth should not affect its ability to supply domestic households.
"If there was a drought, a real dry period like we had in 2010, we would become constrained.
"And on that particular year we have been constrained for about 80 half hours in the year, so that's not very long."
Mr Clark said the company had seen growth since then, and constraint periods would increase.
"We have been mindful of this for a number of years, and are working towards a solution. We are looking for a long-term solution that will meet the future requirements of our electricity consumers."
The company first began looking to upgrade transmission lines about five years ago, with a rise in irrigation use in the district. However, following repeated delays to a proposal by Holcim to build a cement works at Weston, the proposed solution, which would have installed a 110kV line from Livingstone, could not meet Electricity Commission requirements that a large industrial user be in place.
But Mr Clark said he was "confident" a solution, which would operate with or without the new cement works, would be in place within the next five years.
