Transgrid Begins Constructing Workers’ Camps In Lockhart For Australia’s Energyconnect Project
Transgrid has begun construction of a 20-hectare camp in Lockhart in New South Wales, Australia to house workers who will be building the eastern alignment of the A$1.8 billion ($1.2 billion U.S.) EnergyConnect transmission project.
The electricity transmission firm says the 240-worker accommodation camp is being built by its construction partner SecureEnergy. The camp will have facilities like bedrooms with ensuite bathrooms, a fully functional kitchen and dining facility, a gym, Wi-Fi, offices and areas for heavy vehicles and equipment. Workers are expected to occupy the camp in late May.
Transgrid plans to establish six workforce camps along the EnergyConnect alignment, with a total of 1,387 beds. The company is also building camps at Dinawan, near Coleambally, Renmark Road near Wentworth and Cobbs Highway near Hay.
Transgrid notes that it will recycle at least 90% of daily water usage at each camp for use as construction water for compaction of soil and dust suppression. Crews are expected to start work on access points for a major new substation at Dinawan next month, which will form the junction of a 330-kV line from Buronga and a 500-kV line from Wagga Wagga.
The EnergyConnect project has also reached a significant milestone with the arrival of the first phase shifting transformer (PST) in Australia. The subcontractor, Hyosung, has designed and built five PSTs that are specialized transformers controlling the flow of active power on transmission networks. The first 374-tonne transformer has arrived in Adelaide and will be transported by road to Transgrid’s Buronga substation.
Work is also underway on the 16-hectare Buronga substation, Transgrid says. The site will include the five PSTs, two synchronous condensers and four shunt reactors.
The EnergyConnect transmission project will enable the sharing of electricity between New South Wales and Victoria for the first time, integrate renewable energy into the grid and help Australia achieve its emissions reduction targets.
