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The 2024 IPLOCA Excellence in Project Execution Award
by Pedemex BV
sponsored by IPLOCA
This award is given in recognition of an outstanding project execution in onshore or offshore pipeline, or facilities construction.
The Adjudication Committee decided to present the award to SICIM S.p.A. for its Coastal GasLink Project Overcoming Design and Construction Challenges - Section 8 West. The Coastal GasLink is a 670-kilometre, DN 48” pipeline planned to deliver natural gas from northeastern British Colombia, Canada, to the LNG Canada facility in Kitimat. SICIM, in partnership with Canadian group Ledcor, successfully performed the installation of Section 8 West, consisting of 55 km of 48” pipeline considered the most technically challenging portion of the entire project due to
its geographical complexities through the Coast Mountains. SICIM implemented several cutting-edge solutions for pipeline installation to mitigate the numerous risks involved when laying pipes on the severe steep slopes along the pipeline route.
Two runners-up were selected:
Bonatti S.p.A. for its Dry Gulch HDD Crossing. The Trans Mountain Expansion Project is in an area of British Colombia, Canada, characterised by extreme geomorphological conditions. The pipeline route intersects at KP 993 the Dry Gulch channel, a steep V-shaped canyon. Dry Culch was crossed in October 2023 with a 36” pipeline by Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD), as part of the Trans Mountain Expansion Project. The execution of the crossing, 1850 m in length, presented several challenges, including the severe weather conditions, which restrict the time window available for the works. The engineering, planning and setting up of the pullback required extraordinary effort and multidisciplinary coordination. The pullback required three pipeline strings, respectively 1,100 m, 380 m, and 380 m in length to snake across challenging terrain. Detailed planning and design led to a reliable and efficient solution in an extraordinarily challenging environment.
Michels for its Marica Road West HDD for Snowy Hydro 2.0 Project. In 2023, Michels was asked to complete a previously unaccomplished task: installation of a critical, extremely complex HDD for the Snowy 2.0 Pumped Hydro Project in New South Wales, Australia. The Marica Road West HDD was necessary for the installation of power, water, and communication cables required to build and operate Snowy 2.0, the largest committed renewable energy project in Australia. Stretching from Lobs Hole to Marica, the Marica Road HDD is 2,248 metres long. The HDD borehole included an elevation difference of 600 metres from low side to high side, a configuration never achieved by HDD, which is the method with the highest probability for the successful installation of a 219mm (8 5/8-inch) diameter fiberglass reinforced polymer (FRP) carrier pipeline and its critical cables in an environmentally significant area. The Michels team developed an approach to address challenges and deliver a safe, successful project without any negative environmental impacts.
