The builders of the Serbian section of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline passed the segment from the border with Bulgaria to the border with Hungary as soon as possible, setting a record for construction speed. This was stated to reporters by the head of the production and technical department of IDC (Infrastructure Development and Construction, general contractor for the construction of the gas pipeline) Yevgeny Ulrich.

“When laying, we reached the highest pace – more than 500 joints daily, this amounts to more than 6 km of gas pipeline welding. Thanks to the coordinated and simultaneous operation of the entire technological chain, we have reached a pace of up to 6 km of gas pipeline per day. This is a kind of record, 400 km were laid in six months. ”

At the same time, it turned out that the Serbian sector was quite complex in terms of technology. According to Ulrich, mining and blasting operations were carried out in the mountainous part of the country to carry out a gas pipeline. When crossing the roads, the trenchless laying method was used without disturbing the roadway and stopping traffic.

“As soon as we receive gas from the territory of Bulgaria, the gas pipeline will be launched. Annual pumping through the territory of Serbia will be 12.87 billion cubic meters. m. The diameter of the gas pipeline is 1.2 thousand mm, the working pressure is 74 bar. Welding is almost finished, there is little left on the 1st and 4th sections. It is planned to complete the welding by the end of the year, ”said Ulrich.

The underwater crossing of the Serbian part of the gas pipeline under the Danube became the longest in Europe

The underwater crossing under the Danube River in Serbia as part of the construction of the interconnector the border of Bulgaria – the border of Hungary, which is part of the Turkish Stream gas pipeline, broke the European record for the longest, said Eugene Ulrich.

“In the course of the work, the builders faced a number of difficulties due to the difficult geological conditions near the Danube, where coal layers were encountered. Despite this, the passage was completed in 32 days. The border between Bulgaria and the border of Hungary implemented as part of the construction of the gas pipeline, the Direct Pipe underwater route under the Danube River in the Republic of Serbia, length 1402 meters, became the third longest in the world (the first – New Zealand, the second – the USA), and the first in Europe. Thus, a European record was set in Serbia during the construction by Direct Pipe method through water barriers, ”he said.

According to Ulrich, the project initially envisaged passage under the Danube River using microtunneling, that is, the construction of a microtunnel with a diameter of 2-2.5 meters followed by a gas pipe. However, as a result, the most modern Direct Pipe technology of the German company Herrenknecht was applied, the essence of which is the combination of microtunneling and directional drilling methods. “That is, the tunneling shield is welded directly to the gas pipeline and with the help of two pushers, the pipe is pushed forward with a maximum pushing force of 750 tons each,” the director said.

In October, Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, at a meeting with Speaker of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko, said that the Serbian part of the Turkish Stream pipeline would be ready by the end of the year. Earlier, he noted that his country plans to triple the purchase of Russian gas – from 2 billion to 6-7 billion cubic meters. m, including through the “Turkish stream”. Serbia began construction work on its section of the pipeline, without waiting for the completion of work on the Bulgarian segment.