NEWS |


Scheldt immersed tube tunnel milestone progress


OHLA to build twin-tube road tunnel in Santiago CHILE - OHLA has won the contract to build a road and 1.5km-long tunnel in Santiago, Chile. The €280 million (US$320 million)


investment by Sociedad Concesionaria Autopista Central SA, of the VíasChile Group, is for a major road infrastructure project between two of the Chilean capital’s main urban corridors: General Velásquez and Américo Vespucio Norte. The project includes the construction of


a twin-tube mined tunnel under Cerro Lo Ruiz. Each unidirectional tube will connect to the two main urban corridors through modern viaducts. Construction works are to be done


in three sections: A), viaduct and other structures linking General Velásquez with the tunnel; B), the tunnel; and, C), four viaducts to link with the Américo Vespucio Norte highway. As part of a sustainable development


Above: Construction dock in Zeebrugge for the Scheldt immersed tube tunnel is shown being flooded for flotation of the precast concrete elements


BELGIUM - Lantis and JV contractor TM Cotu have flooded the construction dock in Zeebrugge for flotation and sea transport of the precast concrete elements for the Scheldt immersed tube tunnel being built in Belgium. The immersed tunnel’s eight


elements, which have taken two years to construct in the dry dock, will be transported to Antwerp and readied locally for the new road tunnel crossing being built beneath the Scheldt River. The Scheldt immersed tube


tunnel is a key part of the city’s new Oosterweel ring road. The construction dock is


approximately 900m x150m and flooding was performed by mid- April. Lantis project manager Bert


Claeys said filling the construction dock had to be done slowly. He said: “This allows us to


regularly inspect the tunnel sections for any leaks. “As soon as the dock is


completely under water, the tunnel sections disappear from view. A special moment, because it is one of the last times that we can see the tunnel sections that we have worked so hard on.”


6 | June 2025 The next step is controlled


removal of a section of the surrounding dyke, through which each will reach open water for transport to the main project site, about 100km away. For flotation and transport, the


tunnel elements have bulkheads sealing their open ends and also five ballast tanks each, linked via a pipe system to regulate buoyancy. During the dock flooding step, though, the tanks were filled with water to help ensure stability of the elements - each of which weighs up to 60,000 tonnes. The sea transportation was


scheduled to start in late May. Each tunnel element would travel from Zeebrugge to the Doel Dock in Antwerp, over approximately 30 hours, with stops on the way. Placing the elements in their final


position is dependent on tides and the weather. The elements will remain in the Doel Dock until a neap tide occurs and they can be lowered into position in the prepared section of the river bed. The process is expected to last from July until the end of 2025. TM Cotu is a JV of Besix,


Stadsbader Contractors, Deme and Jan De Nul.


approach, approximately 164,000m² of green, recreational areas will be created. In the municipality of Quilicura, a park will be built during the tunnel construction phase, while in the municipality of Renca two landmark parks are planned.


Porr-led JV wins Poland large bore rail tunnel POLAND - Centralny Port Komunikacyjny (CPK) has awarded the contract for the excavation of a 4.6km-long, high-speed rail tunnel in Łódź to a consortium led by Porr. The tunnel is part of the strategic Line


85 – a Y-shaped route – that is to connect Warsaw and the CPK Airport with Łódź by 2032, and extend to Wrocław and Poznań by 2035. Construction is expected to begin later in 2025. The winning bid, worth €410 million


(US$470 million), covers the section between the Retkinia and Fabryczna areas, including all essential infrastructure. It received the highest evaluation based on price (70% weighting) and team experience (30%). The two-track rail tunnel is to be


excavated by TBM with a diameter of approximately 14m. The route passes beneath Łódź’s dense urban areas. This investment marks a major step in


creating Poland’s first true high-speed rail network. The project is closely co-ordinated with


the PKP PLK agglomeration tunnel, which will enhance local connections within the city.


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