Derrinlough
Wind Farm
When conventional methods stalled, a plant-led strategy restored progress.
Client
BAM Civils
Location
Co.Offaly
Scope
Enabling & earthworks
Project Type
Infrastructure enabling works
Challenge
Floating access, deep peat excavation
Outcome
Completed 8 weeks ahead of program
Derrinlough Wind Farm sits on 6,000 acres of former open peat land, located on two bogs in Co. Offaly.
An ambitious project from Bord na Mona comprising 21 Wind Turbines, 18km of internal roads and extensive public amenities built for walking and cycling throughout the site.
ROQ was appointed by BAM Civils to deliver enabling works and earthworks across the site operating within a designated Special Area of Conservation and managing highly variable peatland conditions.
The challenge
Delivering complex civil works across open peatland presents a unique set of operational challenges.
At Derrinlough, the site conditions required careful planning, specialist plant capability and strict environmental controls.
Key challenges included:
- Floating access roads across unstable bog
- Turbine foundation excavation in variable ground conditions
- Strict separation of peat and marl materials
- Continuous drainage alterations across the site
- Large-scale stockpile management across a geographically extensive site
- Groundwater and rainfall threatening excavation stability and program
Peat and marl could not be stored together, meaning material handling and stockpile strategy became just as critical as the excavation itself.
Under these conditions, conventional construction sequencing was no longer effective.
The solution
ROQ implemented a plant-led operational strategy designed specifically for unstable peatland conditions.
Rather than focusing purely on production volumes, the objective was program certainty — ensuring reliable daily progress across the site.
Key operational measures included:
- A specialist long-reach excavator reducing material handling from three movements to one
- Adapted swamper machines enabling progress in areas where heavier plant could not operate
- Bog mats supporting safe site access while minimising ground disturbance
- Drainage management and pumping systems integrated into daily site operations
- Structured stockpile planning to maintain strict material segregation
This integrated approach allowed work to progress steadily despite difficult ground conditions.
TBD
Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non.
The result
The plant-first strategy restored momentum across the project and enabled works to be completed eight weeks ahead of program.
By project completion, ROQ had delivered:
- Stable turbine foundation excavations
- Reliable access across previously inaccessible terrain
- Strict environmental compliance within the Special Area of Conservation
- Controlled segregation of peat and marl materials across the site
- Completion eight weeks ahead of schedule
On peatland sites, productivity alone doesn’t protect program. Adaptability does.
Derrinlough Wind Farm demonstrates how a disciplined plant-led strategy can unlock progress in some of the most challenging ground conditions in civil engineering.
“We need to add a quote here from BAM ”
Name, Role, Company
