Pipeline Construction Survey
40 km 30" Mainline — Soku to Offshore ERP Riser
Construction survey support for 40 km of 30-inch mainline pipe, run from Soku through Niger Delta swamp and across the beach shore approach to the offshore ERP riser.
Soku, Rivers State, Nigeria · 2018
Construction & as-built surveyor
This project laid 40 km of 30-inch mainline pipe from Soku, in the Niger Delta, to the offshore ERP riser. The route runs through mangrove swamp and tidal creeks, crosses the beach, and continues out to sea, so the survey work had to change with the terrain every few kilometres.
In the swamp, GNSS control and total-station traverses set out the right-of-way for barge-mounted pipe crews. On the coast, the beach shore approach became the busiest part of the job: cranes, pipe reels, and winches were staged behind the dunes, a trench was cut through the surf line, and the pipe string was pulled out to the lay vessel waiting offshore. Much of that pull ran overnight.
My role covered setting out, monitoring alignment and levels during trenching and pulling, and recording as-built positions so the mainline could be tied in accurately to the riser.
From the field
