Michels sets North American HDD record on Northern Courier Pipeline

Michels has utilised horizontal directional drilling (HDD) to drill beneath the Athabasca River and, on 21 November, completed an HDD milestone. The 42 in., 7200 ft (2195 m) crossing was near Fort MacKay, about one hour north of Fort McMurray, Alberta. The 1.36 mile installation is a new record for Michels and the longest in North America for a pipe with a 42-in. dia. The final pipe pull took 36 hours to complete.

In addition to the HDD crew, Michels provided pipe support using 10 cranes, five side booms and three excavators to manage the pipe section that was a complex horizontal curve. The section reached 47 ft (14.3 m) high before being pulled under the river at a designed depth of more than 230 ft (70 m).

The complexity and sheer size of the project was completed using two 1.2 million lbs. rigs on each side of the river for the pilot hole intersect and reaming operations. Michels’ 750-t Herrenknecht Pipe Thruster was used to assist during the installation. Subsurface conditions were challenging as crews encountered geology from limestone rock to silts and sands.

Crews stayed in work camps and encountered typical Northern Alberta weather with ranges from 86 F (30 degrees C) to -4 F(-20 degrees C).

This crossing is part of the TCPL Northern Courier Pipeline Project installing 42-in. casing pipe with six HDDs and one Direct Pipe.™

Edited from press release by Angharad Lock

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/02122015/michels-sets-north-american-hdd-record-on-northern-courier-pipeline-1723/