The second of six 153 tonne spiral cases for the Snowy 2.0 power station have made the 442km trip by road from Port Kembla to Lobs Hole in the Snowy Mountains over the weekend.
Each spiral case weighs 153 tonnes and spans over 13 metres long., 7.5m wide and almost 3m high.
The total combined length of the truck and load was 63-metres long.
The move required three prime movers and a specialised trailer – weighing a whopping total of 330 tonnes all up. It’s being hailed as one of the biggest road movements in NSW’s history.
Two prime movers were needed to pull the load, and a third was used push the load on a special-purpose 14-axle built.
The trucks set off on Friday evening and arrived Monday, with the trip spread over three nights.
To safely shift the spiral cases through the road network, the prime movers had three police cars and three pilot vehicle escorts, along with a supervisor to help navigate cornering, bridges and traffic control, and a mechanical support vehicle on standby.
The convoy travelled along Springhill Road, Masters Road, Princess Motorway M1, Picton Road, Hume Highway, Federal Highway, Monaro Highway and Snowy Mountains Highway.
Transport for NSW worked with freight company Lampsons to complete the move, along with Snowy 2.0 principal contractor Future Generation Joint Venture, and NSW Police who helped facilitate the transfer.
A headcover was transported the weekend of November 18, with the first spiral case transported over the weekend of December 1.
The second spiral case followed the same route and itinerary. The remaining four cases will be transported in early 2024.
The spiral cases are components from Snowy 2.0’s electromechanical subcontractor, Voith Hydro, to build pumped hydro units for Snowy Hydro’s underground power station at Lobs Hole.