Project: BTC Pipeline HDD Crossing of Kura River

Where: Tblisi, Republic of Georgia

Overview

GeoEngineers provided expert geologic and horizontal directional drilling advice and design input that led to the completion of the final segment of the BTC oil pipeline from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean Sea. Horizontal directional drilling (HDD) was used to install the pipeline beneath the Kura River, the largest river in the Republic of Georgia.

Approach

• Initial construction difficulties and delays occurred after collapse of the horizontal bores beneath an active railway embankment
• Site geologic conditions were determined to be the root cause of the initial HDD failures
• An alternate drill path and upgraded drilling tools were used to complete the crossing successfully

Results

• Geology was a major contributor in the bore collapse
• The collapse problems were eliminated after redesign per GeoEngineers, which included lowering the bore alignment
• The crossing was completed successfully in ten weeks on the first attempt after the GeoEngineers redesign – prior to GeoEngineers' involvement in two earlier attempts where the original design had consumed nearly a year of the tight construction schedule for the pipeline

Facts

• 1,100 miles of 34- to 46-inch-diameter pipeline
• Pipeline capacity: 1 million barrels of crude oil per day
• HDD length: 745m (2,450 feet)
• Geology included highly folded and faulted mudstone and sandstone 
• Lead GeoEngineers office: Springfield 

Want to know more about this project? Please contact us.