Supernode
Stages 1 and 2
| Developer | Quinnbrook |
| Delivery partner |
New Energy (principal contractor, Stage 1 & 2) |
| Location | Brendale, QLD |
| Solution | RADIX ground screw system |
| Scale | 1,783 screw piles (Stage 1) + 1,349 screw piles (Stage 2) = 3,132 piles total |
| Timeframe | Stage 1 install May–Aug 2025; Stage 2 install Sep–Nov 2025 |
The Stake
Delivering Australia’s largest battery storage project meant finding a foundation system that could match an aggressive build program without compromising compliance. The project had originally been engineered around a concrete footing system, and no one on the client side, design engineer, principal contractor, or developer, had first-hand experience with screw piling at this scale.
The Challenge
Cost was the initial reason to reconsider concrete, but the risk ran deeper: a variable soil profile across the site meant pile depth requirements weren’t consistent, and rising concrete costs combined with limited access to concreting trades put program certainty at real risk. Screw piles hadn’t been used on a project this size in this sector before, and no one yet understood how quickly an install could move.
The Approach
FTA and RADIX began with a five-day proof-of-concept phase. Geotechnical assessment confirmed screw piles could meet foundation depth requirements more reliably than concrete. Torque and full static load testing to Australian Standards, run with an independent certifier, then proved pile performance to the design engineer before configuration was finalised with Radix.
Installation ran with one operator and two ground crew per machine, scaling up as the program demanded. Every 100th pile installed was load-tested, providing the design engineer with an ongoing compliance record rather than a single sign-off.
The Outcome
Stage 1 installed 1,783 screw piles between May and August 2025, moving so fast that FTA repeatedly had to stand down for weeks at a time while other trades caught up. Once the client understood the pace screw piles could deliver, Stage 2’s build program was redesigned around it: 1,349 piles installed between September and November 2025, with the entire stage delivered in three months, roughly a 45% improvement in delivery time over Stage 1. Each stage saved an estimated 42 working days on site against a comparable concrete program. Screw piles delivered Stage 1 around a third faster than a comparable concrete program and Stage 2 nearly 40% faster, translating time savings directly into total build cost savings of millions of dollars.
Other Energy & BESS project examples
Loxton Retaining Wall & BESS Foundations
A concrete-free retaining wall solution where bored piers couldn’t hold.
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