Joseph Gallagher Ltd (JGL) has completed a further microtunnel breakthrough on the Sheikh Isa Bin Salman Tunnel Sewer (SIBS) project in Bahrain, marking the successful conclusion of the project’s second microtunnelling drive.

The recently completed drive measured 121 m in length and involved the installation of a DN1600 pipeline. Excavation was carried out using a Herrenknecht AVN 1600 slurry microtunnelling machine. The drive was completed ahead of schedule, with a strong safety record and consistently high construction quality reported throughout the works.

The SIBS scheme comprises approximately 8.6 km of microtunnelling, with tunnel diameters ranging between DN1200 and DN1800. To meet the programme requirements set by the client, JGL is deploying five microtunnelling machines across multiple drives. The project builds on JGL’s previous experience in Bahrain, following the successful delivery of the Zinj Trunk Sewer (ZTS) project for the same client.

The works are being delivered in close cooperation with the Haji Hassan Group, acting as client, and Stantec, serving as project consultant, with collaboration cited as a key factor in maintaining progress across the scheme.

Construction activities are continuing on site, with JGL currently advancing a 778 m-long DN1800 microtunnel. Owing to the length of this drive, excavation is being undertaken using a gyroscopic guidance system to maintain alignment accuracy. In parallel, the Herrenknecht AVN 1600 is scheduled to be relaunched from the same shaft for a subsequent drive, while an Iseki TCS 1200 microtunnelling machine is due to commence works on a separate alignment in the coming weeks. 02/26.