On July 15 1924, a man named James 'Cyril' Stobie did something extraordinary in South Australia. He patented a unique power pole made of concrete and steel. Fast forward 100 years to July 15 2024, and you can still see the fruits of his labour standing tall in our streets.

Cyril's invention, known as the Stobie pole, was a game-changer. It solved two big problems we had in South Australia: we didn't have enough tall trees to make power poles, and our soil was crawling with pole-munching termites. Cyril's design was so good that we only had to tweak it a bit over the years to suit our unique soil and vast landscape. Today, we have over 650,000 Stobie poles spreading energy across an area of about 180,000 square kilometres.

We’re throwing a year-long party for the Stobie pole. So far, we've featured it in arts, history, and community events, including the 2024 History Festival in May. We even swung open the doors of our Angle Park manufacturing facility for free public tours. They were such a hit that we ran more tours in July to mark the centenary. We also teamed up with the Helpmann Academy for the seventh time on the Stobie Pole Project 2024. This project showcased twelve public artworks on Stobie poles, highlighting their iconic status in our community.

The highlight of the centenary celebrations so far was an event at the Stobie pole manufacturing facility on 15 July. Past and current staff from ETSA / SA Power Networks, along with Cyril's family, joined our CEO Andrew Bills and Pole Manufacturing Coordinator Brian Docking where together, they unveiled a plaque to honour a century of service by the Stobie pole.

Cyril's family, who came from all corners of Australia to celebrate, remembered him as a clever engineer, a renowned tinkerer, a true friend, and a really good bloke. They were grateful and proud that their father, grandfather, and great-grandfather, and his beloved invention, were being recognised. They knew that without James 'Cyril' Stobie, there would be no Stobie pole, and nothing as sturdy and strong to keep the lights on in our beautiful state.

To discover more about Stobie poles see our page The Stobie pole: A century of service.