Bogong Power Development – Estimation of ground conditions under severe constraints

Graham Granger, GHD

The completion of the Bogong Power Development Project during 2009 in the alpine region of north east Victoria involved construction of 7.6 km of tunnels and shafts and an underground power station. The project cost was $240 M and provided 140 MW of power. This project saw the completion of the ‘missing link’ in the Kiewa Hydroelectric Scheme first begun in the 1950’s. This section of the scheme is almost entirely within a major National Park, and access for site investigation was severely limited.

This presentation will describe the geological setting of the Bogong project and briefly outline the geotechnical investigations undertaken and discuss the ways in which the geological and topographic constraints played a role in the design of the schemes major engineering elements. The format of the presentation of the geotechnical data will be outlined. The talk will then present an outline of the main construction processes.

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