HORIZONTAL DIRECTIONAL DRILLING - nodig-construction.com

HORIZONTAL DIRECTIONAL DRILLING 

For General Information on Horizontal Directional Drilling click here 

TATCO BORING CLAIMS WORLD RECORD CROSSING IN SAUDI 

ARABIA 

t the end of 2007, Abu Dhabi HDD contractor Tatco Boring and Installation Est., was awarded 

A the the contract to complete the drilling works for the Berry Causeway Flank 2 HDD project. 

The HDD crossings for this project exceed a length of some 3,150 m which, the company claims, is 

a new world record for this technique. 

Tatco Boring operates smaller HDD Rigs but also has four large Herrenknecht HDD drilling rigs 

in the range of 100 t to 400 t pullback capacity. Although numerous crossings have previously been 

successfully installed the Berry Causeway project was a big challenge for the company. For the 

Berry Causeway project Tatco established a JV partnership with local HDD contractor DCL of 

Dammam. 

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TT Group 

TT-Group: A leading 

manufacturer of Trenchless 

Technologies: Moles, Pipe 

Rammers, HDD, Pipe 

Replacement and Auger boring 

systems and NoDig-equipment 

Herrenknecht 

Manufacturer of TBMs, 

Pipejacking, Microtunnelling, 

HDD and Support Equipment 

and Engineering Services. 

Perforator Ltd 

Sales and Hire of Guided 

Auger boring and Pipebursting 

systems and tooling. 

The HK 250T rig set up on the Berry Causeway side of the boring project. 

The main Contractor for the project is Al Robaya, a local Pipeline Contractor which works mainly 

for Saudi Aramco. 

The Berry Causeway Pipeline Project comprises a bay crossing for which two parallel pipelines of 

more than 3,150 m length are required. The first pipeline is an Oil Trunk pipeline of some 610 mm 

(24 in) diameter, with the second parallel pipeline being a Water Injection pipeline of 760 mm (30 

in) diameter. The pipelines were designed to run at a separation of just 10 m. 

Geotechnical investigations of the project route showed HDD to be a feasible technology and the 

preferred option for completion of the project. However the length of the crossing, the pipe 

dimensions and the geological conditions meant that the Berry Causeway Crossings would be a 

challenging project that could lead HDD technology into new dimensions. 

For this reason the German-based engineering company Back was awarded the contract to 

complete a feasibility study analysing options and to prepare the general engineering design for the 

project. Main challenges were the length of the crossing but also the dimensions of the pipeline 

strings. For example the 760 mm (30 in) diameter pipeline to be installed would weigh more then 

1,525 t. The feasibility study included some new technologies like the patented LFPP (Low Friction 

Pipe Pulling) method, which was presented to the client Saudi Aramco for the installation of the 

pipes. The LFPP patent is held by Michael Back. 

This feasibility study lead to the detailed engineering phase, work that was also carried out by 

engineering company Back . 

To First Page ▲ 

© 2008 NoDig Media Services



One of the drilling mud units 

operating in support of the HK250T 

drilling rig (right). Below, a view 

across the water over the boring 

route. 



TT Group 







Herrenknecht 

Some main features of the project plan included: 

• Pilot hole drilling using the intersect (‘meet in the middle’) technology, the guidance 

system for whic was provided by Prime Horizontal 

• Engineering of the drilling methodology to reduce friction, torque and buckling 

• Minimise the required pulling forces for the final installation of the pipeline 

Al Robaya prepared the pipeline string and the required equipment for the LFPP method. For the 

drilling works Tatco Boring started from both sides of the crossing using a Herrenknecht HK400M 

rig on the Abu Ali side and a Herrenknecht HK 250T rig on Berry Causeway side. To ensure bore 

conditions remained at their best, altogether 4 mud pumps, 4 drilling mud mixing units and 4 

recycling units were established on site. 

After installation of a 406 mm (16 in) diameter casing at the entry points on both sides of the bore 

to stabilise the entry areas, the pilot hole drilling was completed using a mud motor and 170 mm 

(6⅝ in) diameter drill pipe. The ‘meeting point’ of the two pilot holes was planned for the ⅓ - ⅔ 













position along the bore path. After finishing pilot hole operation, a number of different reaming 

steps were undertaken followed by a cleaning run to prepare the bore for the pipe installation. 

The first pipeline string, the 610 mm (24 in) diameter crude oil pipeline was the first to be pulled 

in. and was completed at the time of writing. The pulling forces required for the pull-in operation 

remained within the calculated range during the whole process. It was here especially that the LFPP 

technique helped to reduce the required pulling forces. The actual pulling force used was less then 

40 t. 

After the successful completion of the first pipeline installation in June 2008 preparation works for 

the second parallel larger diameter pipeline crossing are now underway. Given the learning 

experiences gained from the first crossing, completion of the second crossing is planned within the 

next 3 months. Website: www.herrenknecht.com 



TT Group 







Herrenknecht 









To submit editorial for Trenchless Works Issue 26 

please email copy and pictures to: 

ian@nodigmedia.co.uk by 10 October, 2008 

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