Kalyon İnşaat Crosses the Danube

Kalyon İnşaat has successfully completed the most challenging stage of Romania's Black Sea Coast to Podișor Natural Gas Pipeline Project, construction of which began in June 2023. The Danube crossing, at 1,815 meters the longest of the project's 4 river crossings, was completed at a depth of 63 meters using 151 pipes, each 12 meters long. A landmark achievement in Europe, this crossing sets several precedents in execution through its diameter, geological complexity and the scale of equipment mobilized.

The Black Sea Coast to Podișor Natural Gas Pipeline Project undertaken by Kalyon İnşaat is included on the European Union's list of Projects of Common Interest. With a construction cost of EUR 500 million, the project will carry additional gas produced through the expansion of Romania's Black Sea gas reserves to inland connection points. It is important for meeting the growing gas demand of Romania and the European Union and ensuring energy supply security.

The recent disruption of gas flows to Europe through Ukraine as a result of the Russia Ukraine war, and the emerging energy supply difficulties faced by countries including Slovakia, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Austria, once again underline the critical importance of the project currently under way.

Murathan Kalyoncu: “We Have Crossed the Danube”

Emphasizing the successful completion of the Danube crossing, the project's most challenging and important stage, Kalyon İnşaat Chairman Murathan Kalyoncu said:

“The Danube holds a place in my memory as a symbol of the heroic anthem we know as the Plevne March. As a Turkish company rooted in our country, we have proudly represented Türkiye internationally through the projects we have delivered, and with this project we seek to tell a story of heroism, just as in the Plevne March. Successfully completing the Danube crossing, the most challenging stage of the Black Sea Coast to Podișor Natural Gas Pipeline Project, which will play a major role in supplying gas to Europe, is a tremendous source of pride for all of us. The main geological challenge at this stage was the ground conditions, which created a high risk of borehole instability. Additional geotechnical investigations and engineering improvements were carried out before execution to address these issues.

For the Danube crossing of this project in Romania, a country with which we share strong economic, cultural and human ties, we revised the design to pass through more stable limestone to prevent potential underground subsidence along the pipeline route. We set the depth at 62.74 meters. This river crossing is one of the longest HDD (horizontal directional drilling) river crossings undertaken in Europe. Successful completion of the HDD crossings marks a major achievement in trenchless technology. The combination of challenging ground conditions, specially designed solutions and large scale equipment mobilization distinguishes these projects as landmark crossings in Europe,” he said.

Murathan Kalyoncu continued: “The Black Sea Coast to Podișor Natural Gas Pipeline Project has been very important to us since the tender stage. We won the tender, conducted under EU procurement law, by outperforming Europe's largest companies and achieving full marks technically. Since then, our skilled professional teams have continued their work with great care, and we have now completed the project's final phase.”

Completion of the Danube crossing marks the successful delivery of the project's final stage. Following the final connections, the Black Sea Coast to Podișor Natural Gas Pipeline is scheduled to enter service shortly.