Client: Rawabi
Project: Sindalah Island PkG 3 Offshore Utilities in Neom
Location: Sindalah Island, Saudi Arabia

The challenge

The project involved a particularly challenging installation of three medium voltage (MV) power cables to which piggyback fibre optic cables (FOC) were coupled.

The lines were to be pulled through a pre-installed Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD) duct, which was approximately 3km in length and located below sea level, using Rawabi’s marine vessels and barges. The confined space and high friction levels in the duct would create substantial risk for the MV lines during the operation.

The solution

Innovo identified and supplied the appropriate equipment to support Rawabi in achieving the cable pull, potentially the longest underwater pull the world had seen to date.

By expertly combining Dyneema with steel, Innovo and Rawabi assembled an efficient and lightweight pulling line.

Innovo also designed, supplied and installed a custom Lay Support System for Rawabi, adhering to previously provided standard drawings and within the agreed timeframe and scheduled delivery dates.

Innovo’s experienced, specialist personnel provided supervision and operations, engineering and project management including mobilisation and demobilisation of the equipment.

The pulls were monitored by Innovo and Rawabi technicians located in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, and Padova, Italy. This setup enabled real-time adjustments based on pull variations, with immediate instructions sent to the personnel on-site in Neom to ensure smooth execution.

The result

• A world record was achieved! No one had ever pulled a power cable 2,820 meters underwater before Rawabi and Innovo achieved this record. Securing a Guinness World Record as a testament to the exceptional nature of this feat.
• The success of this collaboration highlights both the technical expertise and innovative problem-solving that combined to achieve an unprecedented cable-laying feat.