- Two Grove RT530E-2s, two RT765E-2s and a RT9130E-2 demonstrated high performance under tough working conditions at the Cerro del Aguila construction site.
- Mud, treacherous terrain and strong winds were some of the challenges endured while building the power plant.
A team of five Grove rough-terrain cranes helped to build the 525 MW-capacity Cerro del Aguila hydroelectric power plant in the province of Tayacaja, Peru. Two Grove RT530E-2s, two RT765E-2s and a RT9130E-2 were all working long shifts on the four-year project that will alleviate the country’s fast-growing demand for electricity.
Ranging from 30 t (30 USt) to 120 t (130 USt) in capacity, the Grove cranes performed lifts for an assortment of applications, including foundation building, tunnel construction and erecting a dam structure that contains the Mantaro river. The dam features an 80 m (268 ft)-tall barrier for the reservoir that supplies a water flow to power the plant’s three turbines.
The Cerro del Aguila Hydroelectric Power Plant project is being implemented by a consortium formed from Graña and Montero (GyM) of Peru, and Astaldi of Italy. The hydro plant started its operations in November 2016, but the project is expected to be fully completed in mid-2017. One Grove RT765E-2 remains on the job site to assist with various duties.
“The cranes have performed well under all kinds of strenuous circumstances, such as in mud and other treacherous terrain,” a spokesman from GyM explained. “They really have withstood tough working conditions during this massive and complex project.”
The success of the dam project—with an estimated cost of nearly US$800 million—was dependent on reliable equipment such as the five Grove cranes, and throughout the months they have performed just as expected. In addition to robustness, the cranes’ class-leading capacities and innovative features played a major role in tackling the daily challenges faced by the project’s engineers.
The cranes helped build both the inside and the outside of the dam. The interior contains a machine room that is underground and beneath the dam’s gates that hold back water. This presented a challenge: the cranes had to navigate mud, rock and other rough terrain to maneuver on the job site.
“One of our cranes was actually lifted upward in conjunction with the rising dam barrier, where it lifted metal and other construction materials. We had to place the crane near the edge of the wall quite frequently, and it performed well in the face of high altitudes and strong winds,” the spokesman said.
Grove rough-terrains are the most popular Grove cranes in Peru and Latin America due to their long track record of dependability. The RT530E-2, for example, is used extensively, as it’s compact, robust and reliable.
The RT765E-2 boasts an impressive 65.2 m (214 ft) boom—when equipped with extensions and inserts—and is the best-selling Grove crane in countries like Brazil, Chile and Argentina. It shares the MEGAFORM boom shape found on Grove GMK cranes, giving it full-power capability. The RT9130E-2, for its part, features a Cummins QSC 6 cylinders 8.3L diesel engine and Grove’s Full Vision cab with ergonomically-designed controls that keep the operator comfortable through extensive working hours helping to maximize productivity.