Dolphins at Ras Laffan

Situated some 80 km from Doha, Ras Laffan Petrochemical Industrial City has long been a thriving hub for the production of liquefied natural gas and for gas-to-liquid conversion. Enclosing a 4,500 hectares water area, it ranks as the world's largest artificial harbour and the world's leading LNG export centre. Nevertheless, the great are not immune to the ravages of time. The concrete pillars of one of its mooring berths had begun to crack significantly. BESIX was assigned the task of renovating them.

Based on design work from client Qatargas, BESIX’s engineers decided to encase the pillars in structures prefabricated off-site. The steel caissons were built on land, launched and towed to their final location before being weighted with concrete. This innovative strategy, validated, detailed and calculated by the BESIX Design Department, called for a multidisciplinary approach involving marine works experts, structural engineers, and steel and concrete specialists.

Given imperative operational requirements, the teams had just four months' access to the berth for completing their mission. The key to success lay in the meticulous preparation of operations, and daily coordination with engineers and the customer in order to resolve quickly and effectively any unforeseen technical or logistical problems. The site was completed on time, with minimal impact on the operation of the Qatari port!