PROJECT SUMMARY

Safely installing new petroleum lines below hot lines at an existing terminal facility can be a challenge. While expanding a terminal in Sherwood Park, Alberta, our customer required four parallel 914 mm (36 in) pipelines in two locations. The project involved eight crossings in total and was completed within 88 days.

KEY CHALLENGES

Considerable attention and planning was paramount in minimizing ground disturbance due to the fact the first locations had a web of 31 hotlines (“live” lines carrying variety of products, including bitumen, condensate, gas, oil and electricity) at each crossing. Drilling under pipelines always involves a great deal of risk mitigation. Hydrovac services were called upon to expose (“daylight”) existing lines, with detailed visual monitoring of drill bit progress. On top of this, limited workspace prevented the use of drilling fluid recycling equipment. This required us to make fresh drilling fluid throughout the project, which was disposed of using vacuum trucks.

SERVICES PROVIDED

HORIZONTAL DIRECT DRILLING (HDD)