Two months for contractors to apply for Borumba pumped hydro drilling tenders
Qld Hydro have released two geotechnical drilling packages as part of the exploratory works of the multi-billion dollar Borumba pumped hydro dam.
Business
Don't miss out on the headlines from Business. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Qld Hydro have ended the year with releasing two tenders to market in a major step for the $14.2bn Borumba pumped hydro dam that is set to transform the Mary Valley into a major hub of Qld electricity.
Applications for contractors to access a geotechnical drilling package and a technical services and management support package are now open for the next two months with contracts scheduled to be awarded between April-June 2024.
The game-changing multi-billion dollar 2000MW Borumba pumped hydro dam, still subject to the environmental approvals, has been moving forward with leaps and bounds as Qld Hydro, the state-owned company managing the project, fills out contracts from this financial year’s budget of $6m.
The two packages are a significant part of the exploratory works phase and will give Qld Hydro a better understanding of the geotechnical surfaces and groundwater conditions within the pumped hydro’s footprint, a statement from the company said.
Millions of dollars and two-years of work are up for grabs for local businesses, given the number of drilling contractors in the Gympie, Sunshine Coast, and Wide Bay region with geotechnical drilling capability, Borumba Project Director Leah McKenzie said.
There were three types of drilling required – shallow drilling (up to 200m), deep drilling (200m plus) and groundwater monitoring (up to 30m).
“The second package is for a suitably qualified contractor to provide technical services management support for the geotechnical drilling investigations. This will include co-ordinating the geotechnical drilling contractors, and managing the storage facility and lab work for core samples,” she said.
During the exploratory works, the first of two 1.8km long D-shaped profile access tunnels, 8.5m high and 8.5m wide, roughly the width of three lanes of traffic (~3m/lane) will be built through a drill and blast method.
These tunnel will be used for maintenance, access and running cables from the underground power stations to overground transmission lines.
The construction of the first tunnel during exploratory works will give a more comprehensive understanding of the types of rock and soil around Borumba.
The exploratory works phase is expected to be completed by 2025 and construction to begin in 2026, once final environmental approvals are signed off on.
The competed dam will include a 70GL upper reservoir, held in by six newly constructed dam walls, an underground powerhouse planned to be about as large as Brisbane’s The Gabba Stadium, and new lower dam wall which will increase the capacity of the lower reservoir from 46GL to 220GL with First power has been pencilled in for 2030.
Anglo risks getting caught in the four traps it set for BHP
BHP boss Mike Henry has publicly moved on from Anglo American but the London-listed former target remains even more vulnerable.
Coast companies unite to create $60m construction powerhouse
A family-owned Sunshine Coast company has merged with a Gold Coast business to create a $60m marine construction powerhouse, operating out of a Bells Creek facility.