In order to monitor the current progress of the Horizontal Directional Drilling project, Amin Rajput, Acting MD, SSGC along with Saeed Larik, ASGM (Distribution-South), Shahbaz Islam, AGM (CCD) and Madni Siddiqui, DGM, (R&D) visited the site located near River Indus Pipeline Crossing on February 15, 2017. The MD witnessed the process being done by the foreign and Pakistani workers on site. The AMD was also briefed by the senior engineers of China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau, the foreign contractor involved in this project.
SSGC’s diligent team of engineers and technicians along with the contractor is in the process of completing a challengingtask of laying 2.1 Km portion of the 340 kms 42″ diameter gas pipeline at around 45 meters (148 feet) depth at the River Indus through Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) process. HDD of this magnitude has been carried out for the first time in Pakistan and is a unique project in itself.
This is a part of the mega RLNG-2 project which SSGC is implementing by laying down a 42″ diameter x 337 Km pipeline from SMS Pakland to MVA-Nara for transporting 1.2 BCF RLNG with requisite pressure of 1,115 psig at Sawan (Sindh). This pipeline along the way has to cross River Indus at Kotri Barrage besides several other crossings like Rohri Canal, Naseer, Bhomphar and Sui Kandhar Canal. However, the River Indus is the largest crossing of this mega pipeline project and one of the largest crossing through the HDD process in the country. HDD is a modern and ideal process for speedy laying of pipeline on economic grounds without impacting the environment. HDD is a trenchless technology which is performed without disturbing the existing soil condition. The contract of HDD project at River Indus was awarded to China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau, one of the renowned international pipeline construction company, through an open / competitive bidding process.