Months of planning have culminated in the complex transportation of 78 sets of wind blades from the Port of Ngqura to Noupoort in the Northern Cape in two convoys per week for 12 months.
Transportation of 234 of the 82.5-metre wind blades, the longest ever offloaded in South Africa, has been undertaken by heavy lift specialist Vanguard, which engineered the transport solution requiring a 95m-long rig.
“Each set contains three blades, a nacelle (the cladding for the blades), a generator, a hub and containers. Over 550 individual pieces of cargo are to be transported 500 kilometres to Noupoort,” explained project manager at Vanguard, Joost Heystek.
He added that the project had taken months to plan, with the design of the port layout being critical in the engineering works. Due to the number of components arriving at the port it is essential that the cargo is stored to allow for access and manoeuvrability at all times.
Vanguard completed route surveys and swept path analysis to understand the pinch points along the route, including street furniture and telecom lines within the towns through which the wind blades would need to pass. Bridges are navigated with the highest level of precision. Several new roads had to be established to allow the convoys to make the haul.
