Secure foundations for major project in Bangladesh

thyssenkrupp Infrastructure GmbH, a company of thyssenkrupp Materials Services, is supplying key materials, engineering equipment and components for the foundations of the first nuclear power plant in Bangladesh. The experts from the Pile Driving & Extraction as well as Steel Sections and Anchor Equipment units, ensure that the foundations for this major project are being built on time and that the cargo terminal, at which the containers arrive by ship, can be constructed.

In Ruppur, some 180 kilometers west of the capital Dhaka, the first national nuclear power plant is to secure energy supplies in Bangladesh as from 2023. The main reason for selecting Ruppur is the Padma river, which will supply the cooling water for the planned power plant. As land around the river takes the form of an alluvial plain, it was necessary to find a company with worldwide experience in sand drilling and providing the necessary vibrators.

"The requirements and degree of complexity are particularly challenging. We are delighted that we were able to tip the scales with our expertise in global infrastructure projects and win the tender," explains Ina Munteanu, Project Manager at thyssenkrupp Infrastructure.

With a total of three vibration units and over 1,200 tons of ASF anchor piles with a diameter of 64 cm and a thickness of 90 millimeters, the experts at thyssenkrupp Infrastructure are making a major contribution to the construction of the foundations. The vibrators are a müller MS-50 H3 with MS-A420 V and a müller-100HHF with MS-700 V for installing pipe lengths of 17 meters and a diameter of 630 and 1020 millimeters. In order to get the even larger up to 37 meter long pipes with a diameter of 1420 millimeters into the almost impenetrable subsoil, an even more powerful vibrator was needed.

"Sand is one of the trickiest of soils. So, only our müller MS 210 HHF with MS-A 1150 V was suitable for the large pipes. The vibrator is one of the most powerful in the industry," says Munteanu. In addition to commissioning the vibrators on site, the experts at thyssenkrupp Infrastructure provide technical advice throughout the entire project. An important project step was, among other things, the design for the anchoring of the ASF piles for which engineering office did all the work and designed a protected solution.