POWER cuts could be a thing of the past when work is completed on a £9m revamp to the electricity network in Worcestershire and Herefordshire.

One of the biggest expenditure will be £2.5m for sub-station work to help improve supplies to Worcester homes and firms.

To meet increased demand for electricity in the Droitwich area, state-of-the-art equipment including another £2.1m transformer will be installed in the town.

A further £2m will be spent on power lines for people living in Ombersley, Evesham, Storridge, near Malvern, and Belbroughton, near Kidderminster.

In Herefordshire, £2.4m is being spent on improving overhead lines in a bid to keep electricity flowing to customers in rural areas.

Central Networks, the electricity distributor for central England, will carry out the work as part of a four-year £1.2bn investment programme across the area.

Design manager for the company Andrew Roper said: "We are committed to investing in the network and to providing our customers with a first class service. The work in the counties will start in 2006.

"With more homes being built and businesses coming into the area, this work will help future-proof the area as demand for power grows in Worcestershire and Herefordshire."

The news will be welcomed by residents plagued by power cuts.

In November, the Worcester News reported how 750 homes and businesses were left without power in Malvern, and in a separate incident, 500 premises were in the dark in Worcester.

Just last week, 4,460 households in Droitwich were forced to cope without electricity for a night.

Other projects in the two counties include state-of-the-art remote controlled equipment in some areas of Hereford to ensure power is restored more quickly when there is a problem.