“A perfect failure!” Transmission tower collapses in the name of stronger renewable grids

Footage of an electricity transmission tower collapsing in pile of dust would usually be cause for alarm and hand-wringing – and likely also renewable energy blaming, particularly if it happened in Australia! But in a video posted to LinkedIn on Monday it’s being celebrated as a “perfect failure.”

The video shows the result of tests being conducted by the infrastructure arm of Acciona, which together with Genus is behind the $1.4 billion Humelink East transmission project for New South Wales network company Transgrid.

Humelink East includes the design and construction of 237 km of 500 kV overhead transmission lines from Bannaby to Wondalga, and the upgrading of the 500 kV Bannaby substation. 

It includes a major detour to the Snowy Mountains where it will provide capacity for the much maligned Snowy 2.0 pumped hydro energy storage project to connect with the rest of the grid. Transgrid says it will unlock an extra 3,000 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy capacity into the grid.

A screenshot of the LinkedIn video posted by Acciona

So how is it connected to tumbling transmission towers?

“Destructive testing in China for the first Humelink East tension tower fell just as we planned. It held strong until 105% load – a great result,” says Acciona’s Peter Barnard, who posted the video.

“Projects like this give momentum to the energy transition – stronger grids to bring renewable power where it’s needed.

“Great working with the team – Acciona Genus JV, Aurecon, ADEA, and our client Transgrid.”

In comments, Barnard clarifies that the tower collapse occurred at “105% of the test load, which passed at 100% – and that test load already includes built-in conservatism and error factors. The design load is lower, so we’re well within safe margins.”

Transgrid, which has contracted Acciona Construction Australia Pty Ltd and Genus Infrastructure (NSW) to build HumeLink East, has good reason to be invested in transmission tower testing.

Last year, the power went out in the New South Wales regional city of Broken Hill and surrounding areas late in the evening of Wednesday October 16 when seven towers along the only transmission line linking the area to the main grid were blown down, and the link failed.

As Renew Economy has reported, the toppling of the towers triggered the event, but the cause of the subsequent rolling blackouts – some lasting more than a week – is complicated and has been the subject of a number of investigations, including a NSW parliamentary inquiry.

In the meantime, it’s good to know that efforts to design more robust transmission towers are yielding results.

Renew Economy reached out to Acciona to get more detail on the type of testing being conducted. Updates to come.

If you would like to join more than 28,000 others and get the latest clean energy news delivered straight to your inbox, for free, please click here to subscribe to our free daily newsletter.