FEATURE ARTICLE Pile Driving Between the Amazon and Xingu Rivers: Solution Found The construction of the 1,800 km (1,125 mi) long Tucuruí-Macapá-Manaus High Voltage Power Line started in 2008, and the Brazilian National Electrical System Operator first powered it in July of 2013. At a total cost of US$1.2 billion, it encom- passes more than 3,300 towers, some of them 300 m (980 ft) tall — the equivalent of a 100-floor building. The job was one of extreme technical complexity, crossing regions of major forests and rivers. The line now connects the northern Brazilian states of Amazonas, Amapá and Pará to the Brazilian National Electricity Grid, greatly improving the reliability of energy distribution in that region, and eliminating the need for diesel fuel thermal plants, with their larger environmental footprint. It also provides fiber optic network to the two state capitals, Macapá and Manaus. The Spanish contractor Isolux Corsán won the tender to construct and operate a substantial part of the line, including the part between the Amazon and the Xingu Rivers. Work on this part started in 2012, AUTHORS and included about 100 transmission towers up to 150 m (490 ft) high, through a region known as “Alagados.” This region has a 1.5 m (5 ft) water level during the rainy season, and soaked ground the rest of the year. Navigating regular vessels is impossible during the flood season, when dense and intricate vegetation called “bulhado” fills the riverbed, and vehicle traffic is impossible during the dry season, Figure 1. The “bulhado” vegetation, which makes navigation difficult in the rainy season Jorge Beim, JWB Consulting, LLC, Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Marcelo Groszownik, GPX Geotecnia e Pesquisas, Curitiba, PR, Brazil; and José Carlos do Amaral, Benapar Fundações, Curitiba, PR, Brazil DEEP FOUNDATIONS • JAN/FEB 2014 • 53
