Securing the Huntly heavy haulage route for the Genesis Energy Huntly e3p Power Station Upgrade, New Zealand

This paper outlines some of the challenges faced in securing a reliable transport route for the largest loads ever transported on New Zealand roads over 100km of highway and motorway including crossing 35 bridge and culvert structures, traversing motorway interchanges in a contra flow arrangement, crossing a main rail line several times at specially constructed grade intersections, and finally negotiating one of New Zealand’s largest rivers, before weaving its way through the tight constraints of an existing power station. At the end of 2001 Genesis Energy appointed Connell Wagner as their consulting engineer for e3p to secure a suitable route for several extreme over weight and overdimensioned loads to be transported to Huntly Power Station. What transpired were nearly four years of planning, investigation, preliminary and detailed design, construction, consenting and ultimately monitoring of the loads and structures on route during the transportation journey between Auckland and Huntly. (a) For the covering entry of this conference, please see ITRD abstract no. E214936.