This work contributes toward research in the field of lightning performance of High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission lines, focusing on the impact of the line polarity on the incidence of line faults. Although there has been some recent research into the influence of polarity, there appears to be no confirmed effect that might influence the design of new lines. The research presents an investigation into the lightning performance of the two poles of the Cahora-Bassa HVDC transmission line. In order to compare the performance of the two polarities, the average lightning exposure over an 8-year period was confirmed to be very similar for both lines. Lightning stroke data from the South African Lightning Detection Network was correlated with fault times from the transmission-line protection scheme. The classification of the lightning related faults was used to determine the relative performance of the two poles, particularly in relation to polarity, and to infer if there was any influence of polarity on the lightning attachment process. This investigation for the Cahora-Bassa scheme shows that twenty-three out of twenty-five lightning related faults occurred on the positive pole. The results concur with performance experience on several HVDC lines from China and Canada, which indicate that lightning related faults favour the positive pole by a ratio of between 8:1 and 10:1. This represents a valuable contribution, which substantiates that HVDC line polarity has an influence on the lightning attachment process, and indicates that there is a need to re-examine the lightning shielding design for HVDC transmission lines. / GS2016