Middle East to see longest-ever sea outfall

11 August 2020


Joseph Gallagher Group, in partnership with Al Hassanain BSC, has started work on the Middle East’s longest-ever sea outfall to be undertaken by pipejacking. It is seen as one of the region’s most complex water schemes.

The US$55.2m project forms part of a US$1.6bn public private partnership to improve the Umm Al Hayman Wastewater Treatment Plant in the Ahmedi area of Kuwait

Lead by WTE Wassertechnik, the project comprises around 3,643m of open cut, a 190m-long inland microtunnel; and a 1,950m-long sea outfall into the Persian/Arabian Gulf using 2.2m internal diameter RC pipe.

Herrenknecht is providing the AVN2000-type MTBM upskinned to 2.64m-diameter. Working in conjunction with an estimated 16-17 interjack stations, the machine will bore mainly through poorly-graded sand and silty sand ranging from 41 to 46MPa respectively.

When the project ends after around 22 months (including six for manufacturing and design) the MTBM will be retrieved from below the sea bed using air bags, then towed to the nearest port.