Ale completes wind turbine generator components delivery for Amakhala wind project

Lifting, transporting, installing and ballasting solutions provider ALE has completed the delivery of 560 wind-turbine generator components, comprising an equal number of trips, at the end of January for the eight-month-long Amakhala Emoyeni wind project, in the Eastern Cape.

The wind farm, valued at about R3.9-billion, is being developed by cleaner energy company Cennergi. The farm is set for commercial operation in June this year, Engineering News reported last August.

The 134.4 MW plant will consist of 56 N117/ 2400 Nordex turbines, which have been specially developed for low-wind sites and will have a capacity factor of 35%. The first shipment of wind turbines for the project arrived at Coega Bay, in the Eastern Cape, in May 2015.

ALE was contracted to provide the handling of 560 wind-turbine generator components, each comprising four tower sections and three blades, as well as one nacelle, a rotor hub and drivetrain, ALE project manager Zayno Myburgh explains.

The wind-turbine generator components differed in weight and dimensions, and involved transporting the longest blades – at 57.5 m – to date by ALE.

ALE delivered all components on schedule. “The successful completion signifies our strengths in using our specialist personnel and equipment for our clients in the wind energy sector,” says Myburgh.

The company is the first in South Africa to use a new lay-down area, which serves as a temporary storage site for abnormal cargo, outside the Port of Ngqura, in the Eastern Cape. The components arrived on eight geared vessels.

ALE‘s responsibilities included receiving the components at the port, transporting them to temporary storage and then to site, as well as offloading the components on site, located 250 km away in Amakhala, Bedford.

Fifty ALE employees were involved in the operations. To handle the components, the company supplied two mobile cranes and one telehandler for the port operations. The components were delivered in a convoy, consisting of ten special abnormal-load trailers and 20 ALE light-vehicle escorts. The convoy to site included a traffic police escort.

On site, ALE offloaded the components using the cranes and telehandler and assisted by ALE’s rigging crew. A site manager oversaw and coordinated the offloading operations.

Myburgh explains that the brief was to deliver two complete turbines a week.

He highlights the company’s involvement in this milestone project for the local area, which has assisted in creating up to 750 MW of wind energy over multiple phases, creating jobs in the community.

Challenges included negotiating the cargo through the Olifantskop pass, as the lanes were too narrow for traffic in both directions. “The traffic police had to close the pass for oncoming traffic for two hours in the morning. This meant that we had to overcome any potential delays,” Myburgh explains.

Nevertheless, ALE has invested in specialist and advanced wind equipment, which enables the company to carry out projects like these within set timelines and to the highest quality and safety standards, he concludes.