Our team was engaged to carry out a geotechnical Investigation to develop a ground model assessment for the expansion of the Brigalow Peaking Power Plant in Hopeland, located approximately 230km northwest of Brisbane, QLD.
The investigation area was located within the greenfield site, in an industrial area neighbouring the existing operations of the Kogan Creek Power Station. Our scope of work included informing the preliminary and detailed designs for the following:
- A multi-unit natural gas and hydrogen blend fuel-based gas peaking power plant
- An electrical substation and overhead line connection
- Access roads and hardstand areas.
Our Involvement
Our team carried out the investigation to assess subsurface conditions across the site, as a basis for comments and recommendations on the following:
- Excavation characteristics of soil and rock across the site
- Ground conditions and associated relevant geotechnical design parameters
- Suitable foundation options for structures
- Earthworks for site levelling and pavements
- Subgrade CBR values for pavement design and construction recommendations for access roads and hardstand areas
- Stability of cut and fill slopes
- Suitability of cut materials to be used as fill
The investigation will also be used to support the structural and civil design.
The scope of works for the geotechnical investigation included:
- Engaging a drilling subcontractor to drill 21 boreholes (totalling over 250 metres of drilling), in-situ assessment and logging of materials
- Measuring groundwater level on-site via piezometer installation
- Collecting rock core samples and carrying out point load testing
- Photography of all logged rock materials
- Test pits to include in-situ thermal resistivity
- Plate Load Testing
- Electrical Resistivity Testing
- Downhole Seismic Testing
- Preparing factual geotechnical report, comprising the undertaken investigation works, encountered subsurface materials and detailed borehole logs.
What we achieved
Still ongoing, our team has successfully completed several geotechnical investigations across the site despite access issues due to inclement weather, which was unusual for the time of year.
High quality drilling, core recovery, logging, and rock testing services enabled the team to sample sub-surface soil strata despite shallow weak sedimentary rock.
The client was happy with how the speed of which our team turned around the investigation, engineering logs and reporting.