Appin mine vent shaft 7 & 8 main substation
- Project: Appin Mine Vent Shaft 7 & 8 Main Substation
- Client: ARA Electrical Engineering Services Pty Ltd
- Sector: Mining & Resources
- Year: 2023–2025
Fraser-Lever delivered the coordinated multidisciplinary design for the main 66/11 kV substation supporting the Appin Mine Vent Shaft 7 & 8 project. The new substation provides power distribution for critical ventilation, underground mine equipment and surface infrastructure, integrating high-voltage supply with protection, controls, communications and supporting civil and structural works.
Project overview
The Appin Mine Vent Shaft 7 & 8 project required additional ventilation, power and communications infrastructure to support safe and efficient underground mining operations as mine workings progressed further from existing entries.
The new main substation incorporates a 66 kV switchyard, two redundant 66/11 kV transformers, an 11 kV switchroom and equipment room, low-voltage protection and control facilities, 415 V general and essential services, backup generation, power factor correction, earthing and communications infrastructure.
Fraser-Lever’s role
Fraser-Lever provided integrated electrical, civil and structural engineering across the substation package, coordinating the physical layout, equipment interfaces and supporting infrastructure required for construction and commissioning.
The scope included:
- Electrical system studies and protection design
- 66 kV and 11 kV single-line diagrams, schematics and termination drawings
- PLC, SCADA, communications and inter-tripping documentation
- Substation layout and 3D model coordination
- Earthworks and substation pad design
- Cable trenching and conduits
- Earth-grid design
- Concrete foundations
- Fencing and associated construction specifications
- Construction and commissioning design updates
The team also integrated the incoming utility connection with the mine’s electrical systems, completed fault, protection and arc-flash studies and maintained coordinated civil, structural, electrical and controls documentation throughout delivery.
The engineering challenge
The substation brought together a high-voltage utility connection, critical mine ventilation loads, underground power distribution and surface services within a single safety-critical facility.
The design required close coordination between the 66 kV switchyard, transformers, modular switchrooms, underground borehole feeds, cable routes, earth grid, foundations, fencing and future mine-access infrastructure.
These physical interfaces also had to integrate with Endeavour Energy requirements and the mine’s broader safety inter-tripping philosophy, while allowing the engineering to be updated through construction and commissioning.
Engineering in practice
Fraser-Lever developed a coordinated substation arrangement that separated the incoming isolator, 66 kV switchyard, transformer bays, 11 kV switchroom, low-voltage protection and control facilities, power factor correction equipment and backup generation while maintaining the required electrical, cable and operational interfaces.
Civil and structural design was developed around the electrical arrangement, coordinating the substation pad, trenches, conduits, earth grid, foundations and fencing with equipment locations and cable routes. Electrical studies were undertaken to validate fault levels, protection coordination, CT and VT application and arc-flash requirements.
Reliability and safe operation were incorporated through two 66/11 kV transformers providing N-1 redundancy, independent 11 kV underground feeds, backup supply for critical services, remote high-voltage switching and integrated safety inter-tripping. Coordinated 3D model-based set-out helped manage civil and electrical interfaces and support constructability.
Project outcomes
Fraser-Lever completed the multidisciplinary design packages for the Appin Vent Shaft 7 & 8 main substation, including detailed civil, structural, electrical and controls documentation.
Deliverables included detailed drawings and specifications, coordinated engineering models, power-system and protection studies, functional and system design documentation and commissioning-related revisions. An as-built functional requirements specification was also prepared following commissioning.
The integrated approach reduced interface gaps between the electrical plant and supporting civil and structural works, supported clearer construction packages and improved constructability. The resulting design provides redundant power distribution for critical ventilation, underground and surface loads while accommodating future mine-access interfaces.
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