Convoys carrying massive grid-scale equipment have begun making their way inland from Port Kembla to the substations currently under construction on the nation-critical HumeLink transmission alignment.
Two shipments, each carrying a 124-tonne transformer that is the size of a small house, have arrived at Maragle Substation in the Snowy Valleys in recent weeks.
A third shipment carrying a 134-tonne shunt reactor was delivered to Bannaby Substation in the Southern Tablelands on 7 May.
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Transgrid HumeLink program director John Burke said the arrival of these units marked a major step in building the new and upgraded substations that will anchor the 365km transmission project.
“As part of HumeLink, we are constructing new substations at Maragle and Gregadoo, and upgrading our existing substations at Wagga Wagga and Bannaby,” he said.
“These transformers and shunt reactors are the core pieces of equipment that will enable the substations to help transmit cleaner, more affordable energy to millions of households and businesses across NSW.
“They will help stabilise the flow of electricity, manage voltage, and allow huge amounts of renewable energy to move safely across the state.”
HumeLink will ultimately take delivery of 16 transformers and eight shunt reactors, which are the first three-phase shunt reactors installed at 500kV in the Australian electricity industry.
Maragle will be the first substation in Transgrid’s network to feature three 500 kV transformer banks, which will enable HumeLink to unlock Snowy 2.0’s full output of 2,200MW—enough energy to power up to three million homes for a week.
Burke said the equipment was arriving in a series of oversize overmass convoys, which involved six months of planning and consultation with an array of different stakeholders.
“Safety is central to all traffic and vehicle operations on HumeLink and for these movements we have worked closely with the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator, utilities, local councils, NSW Police, and Transport for NSW,” he said.
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“The heavy-haul convoys include at least three prime movers—one pulling and two pushing—together with pilot vehicles, police escorts and support crews navigating steep terrain, narrow bridges and overhanging branches,” he said.
“We are grateful for the community’s patience and understanding during this complex logistical exercise, which is essential to the delivery of Australia’s energy transition.”
