The Crossing Group Completes Record-Breaking HDD Intersect in Freezing Cold

The Crossing Group recently completed a 2,955-metre intersect horizontal directional drilling (HDD) crossing.

From December 2025 to February of this year, the company’s crews used maxi HDD rigs to install a pipeline beneath the Athabasca River in the frozen wilderness of northern Canada.

What Is Intersect HDD?

In this special trenchless method, HDD rigs start drilling simultaneously from opposite ends of the crossing and meet underground at a predetermined point. From that point one rig pushes while the other pulls to complete the pilot bore.

Completed on budget and ahead of schedule, the record-breaking project also included the installation of 36-inch casing pipes at the entry and exit points.

Project Scope

The crossing was completed as part of the Whiskey Jack Lateral pipeline project, developed by Wolf Midstream in north-eastern Alberta, connecting the Fort McMurray area to the Alberta Industrial Heartland.

The Crossing Group was engaged to carry out the long-range HDD crossing as part of this pipeline; the company is installing a 12-inch steel pipeline that crosses the Athabasca River through difficult terrain south of Fort McMurray.

Technical Details

The intersect bore — the jewel of the whole project — was built to a remarkable total length of 2,955 metres.

As on many large-diameter HDD projects, casing pipes were installed underground at the shallow entry and exit points to provide stability, and the drilling tools were run inside these support structures.

Location	Casing 1	Casing 2
Entry side	60 m long, 36 in	40 m long, 42 in (telescopic)
Exit side	75 m long, 36 in	45 m long, 42 in

The steel casings, with wall thicknesses of 20 to 25 mm, were installed with a hydraulic hammer during the previous winter construction season before drilling, capped and left waiting for the return.

A 12¼-inch pilot hole was drilled from both ends and steered to intersect at the midpoint, followed by a 24-inch reamer pass to enlarge the bore to its final diameter.

Geology and Drilling Fluid

The geology encountered consisted mainly of clay shale, dolomite and limestone, with rock strength between R2 and R4. Bitumen-bearing oil sand and oil sandstone lenses were among the challenges of the project.

Given the bore length and diameter, a polymer-based mud recipe with strong carrying and cleaning properties, designed specifically for the clay, shale and dolomitic limestone geology, was prepared to maintain bore stability and evacuation.

Steering Technology

Because the bore length exceeded the distance a standard magnetic steering coil could cover from either end — 660 metres from the entry and 410 metres from the exit — most of the bore, roughly two-thirds, had to be drilled without magnetic steering data, relying entirely on gyroscopic steering tools.

The intersect took place at 1,550 metres, with an 80-metre overlap used to confirm alignment. PMR (passive magnetic ranging) was used to verify gyroscopic drift and confirm that the two drill strings were being tracked correctly.

All pilot-hole steering was carried out by the company’s own steering crew rather than being subcontracted to a specialist firm.

Rigs Used

Location	Rig	Capacity
Entry side	American Augers Maxi HDD	450 tonnes
Exit side	American Augers Maxi HDD	285 tonnes

TCI (tungsten carbide insert) tooling was used throughout the drilling and reaming operations, and expected wear on reamers and tools was managed.

Operating in Extreme Cold

Boiler systems on both sides of the crossing kept the equipment working in the extreme cold, even though temperatures dropped to −40 °C and below several times.

“Everything slows down at these temperatures. Equipment maintenance, crew rotations, fluid management and maintaining productivity required discipline and planning at every level.” — Jesse Funnell, Vice President of Projects, Crossing Group

The crews managed to stay on site despite the freezing cold. Camp infrastructure on the entry side also allowed the crews to stay on site, which preserved productivity during the limited construction window and reduced the burden on the team.

Environmental Constraints and Schedule Management

The project was carried out within a tight construction window from December to March because of environmental constraints. Access to the entry side alone required a journey of about 80 minutes, and ice bridges were vital for moving equipment and personnel.

Access problems early in the season cost the project about a week’s delay. The team worked 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, including over Christmas, to manage and protect the schedule.

“At no stage of a 2,955-metre gyroscopic intersect HDD project metres below the ground can you improvise. Every decision was data-driven, every risk was anticipated and the team executed flawlessly. That is what we set out to do, and we did it.” — Jesse Funnell

We congratulate them, especially for showing once again how projects that seem impossible are brought to life with trenchless methods, and how added value beyond imagination is created. We hope that similar projects will be produced in our country too, and that the way will open for the already skilled Turkish contracting sector to become a world brand in innovation- and technology-intensive projects as well.