Al Raffa, Land Development Project, Bahrain

Joseph Gallagher Ltd (JGL) successfully delivered specialist microtunnelling works as part of the Al Rafaa Land Development Phase 1 Project, a major infrastructure development covering approximately 102 hectares in the Southern Governorate of Bahrain.

The development site is located between Sheikh Khalifa Bin Salman Highway and Zallaq Highway and forms part of a wider programme of infrastructure works including road construction, stormwater drainage, sewer networks, irrigation systems, potable water networks and electrical distribution.  Joseph Gallagher was appointed by the main contractor, NASS Corporation, on behalf of the Ministry of Works Bahrain, with design and project consultancy provided by Parsons Corporation. The works involved the installation of 474 metres of microtunnelling across nine drives, for protective sleeves for the project’s stormwater pipeline system. The crossings comprised:

• 3 Forcemain highway crossings, 59.17m in length with a positive gradient of 38.60mm per metre.
• 3 Syphon Pipe highway crossings, 90.40m in length with a positive gradient of 32.68mm per metre.
• 3 Forcemain Connection crossings under high value services 9.25m in length with a negative gradient of - 7.00mm per metre.

Six of the nine drives were launched from a single drive shaft, requiring careful sequencing and precise tunnelling control to maintain alignment and efficiency.