When ensuring that South Africa’s fast-growing renewable energy sector projects have strong foundations – literally – it is vital that ground conditions are understood as early as possible in the project life cycle.
As part of the SRK Consulting global network of engineers and scientists, SRK Consulting (South Africa) has been extensively involved in geotechnical work on the country’s renewable energy projects. This includes wind farms and solar projects from the Western Cape to Limpopo, according to Daniell du Preez, engineering geologist at SRK Consulting. Du Preez is often one of the first people on site – and in the case of the often remote location of these projects, this presents various challenges.
“The country’s wind farms, for instance, are often in remote, inhospitable and mountainous areas,” he explains. “Heavy machinery like drill rigs or excavators are usually necessary when investigating ground conditions, so we first need to create the roads so that this equipment can get to site – a process that can take weeks.”
