The foundations for some of the world’s largest and most advanced heavy-duty electrical equipment are being built at the EnergyConnect project’s Buronga substation.
According to Transgrid, the work marks a significant milestone in the construction of one of the largest substations in the Southern Hemisphere.
Transgrid and its construction partner SecureEnergy are constructing the 700km NSW phase of the $1.8 billion EnergyConnect project, which extends from Wagga Wagga to the South Australian border and connects to Red Cliffs in Victoria.
Fifteen concrete trucks were loaded at Mawsons’ Buronga and Mildura plants. Approximately 50 personnel were involved in the pour for the foundations for two synchronous condensers that will lie at the core of the new 16ha Buronga substation.
“We are getting on with the job of building the critical EnergyConnect interconnector which will integrate renewables into the grid and allow energy sharing between NSW, Victoria and South Australia for the first time,” Transgrid Project Director Stephen Troughton said.
According to Troughton, the Buronga substation, which will serve as the major hub for the link between the three states, will be one of the largest and most sophisticated in the Southern Hemisphere.
“The EnergyConnect project is providing a major boost to businesses and jobs in communities along the 700km project alignment with more than $18 million spent on local suppliers to date including Mawsons Concrete & Quarries and the Garraway Group at Mildura,” Troughton added.
Mawsons Western Operations Manager Concrete Gary Harvey stated that the amount of concrete used was the equivalent of 120 truckloads.
“We had to supply concrete at a certain temperature which was under 23 degrees, and with the number of trucks involved, it was always going to be a night pour,” Harvey said.
Nathan Contractors calculated the amount of concrete needed and oversaw the pour for SecureEnergy, providing 16 concreters, some of which were local.
Next week, an additional 850 cubic metres of concrete will be poured to complete the foundations for the synchronous condensers.
The two 120 MVA synchronous condensers are employed for system stability and grid circuit strength and play an essential part in Australia’s transition to cleaner renewable energy.
Mawsons is also supplying concrete for the footings of the towers currently being built in Buronga, boosting the local economy.
According to Transgrid, the complex equipment at the Buronga substation on Arumpo Road will include two synchronous condensers, five phase shifting transformers, three power transformers, and four shunt reactors.
This month, crews at the Buronga substation also completed foundation work for the transformers that accompany the synchronous condensers, as well as the first of five phase shifting transformers.
The first phase shifting transformer will be delivered to Australia from South Korea soon. A specialist type of transformer controls the active power flow on transmission networks.
The Buronga site also includes an accommodation camp for 340 workers and a storage area for equipment and materials.
