Power-station begun

Press, 2 April 1980, Page 7

Power-station begun

The first concrete has been poured at the Ohau C power-station site at the Upper Waitaki power developments, beginning five years’ work that will involve more than 130.000 cubic metres of concrete. Work began on pouring 350 cubic metres of concrete on the top of the penstock slope for a slab of concrete that will be used to site a crane for work on the adjacent intake structure. Unlike other construction preg: mimes on the giant scheme, work will not start on the powerhouse structure, but on the penstock intakes. This is because the intake is required as a coffer dam

to hold water in the Ohau C. canal when Ohau B power-station is commissioned in 1982. The excavation of the Ohau C powerhouse site is still being done by heavy earth-moving machines, and resident engineer Mr J. Bell, said it would take between a month and a month and a half before the final 150.000 cubic metres of earth had been shifted.

■ Nearly two ■ million cubic metres of! earth had been excavated to form the power-house site. The commissioning date for Ohau C is December. 1984, when, the last of four 53megawatt machines is completed.