"You did an outstanding job in providing the hydrologic studies for Atigun. I definitely like your style in making presentations to the regulatory agencies. You have created a tremendous amount of credibility for us with them."
In their traverse from natural resources to markets, long distance oil and gas pipelines may traverse varied terrains and cross rivers subject to floods, ice jams, glacier-dammed lake releases and debris flows generated by rain, snow melt or volcanic eruptions.
Frequently the pipeline traverse remote regions of the world with little or no historic river information. Environmental requirements for river crossings are constantly evolving and becoming evermore stringent.
Continuous experience – Long term design, approvals, construction and operational monitoring experience. Forty (40) and fifteen (15) years of continuous input to the trans-Alaska oil pipeline (since 1973) and the Gas Atacama pipeline (since 1997) in Argentina respectively forms an unmatched basis for this experience and attests to the owner’s trust in Wim’s input. This long term experience is the foundation for Wim’s pipeline consulting – presently advising on a Canada wide monitoring manual and authoring on ASME book chapter on river crossings.
Extreme pipelining – A senior role in the design and construction of four other major pipelines from the Amazon and Rio Parana jungles and across the towering Andes in South America since 1998. The ability to design safe yet practical river crossings, either buried or elevated in data-scarce regions and in areas of landslides debris flows, and volcanic eruptions was a significant challenge. The value of local knowledge, in one instance of a 94-year old resident in Ecuador, is recognized and utilized.
Regulatory approvals – A sound understanding of regulatory requirements gained via numerous applications and providing expert testimony at hearings in Canada and the U.S. over the last 40 years. In preparation for a 2012-2013 multi-month hearing for a major oil pipeline in Canada, Wim was engaged by the owner to do a mock cross-examination of design and environmental panels. He is presently developing construction plans for major pipelines in Canada and Alaska.