Two 9.93 m-diameter Aker Wirth TBMs have started construction of the 18 km-long central section (lot KAT 2) of the 32.5 km Koralm high-speed railway tunnel between Graz and Klagenfurt. The first 3 km from the eastern portal of the two single-track bores were excavated using conventional tunnelling techniques.

Contractors Strabag/Jaeger have built a 60 m-deep supply/launch shaft at Liebenfeld, south of Deutschlandsberg, which is served by a branch from the Graz-Koeflach Railway (GKB) Lieboch-Wies-Eibiswald line. Construction materials are delivered by rail to the site, and tunnel spoil is removed in hopper trains. The job is scheduled for completion in 2020. Click here and at/42 for tunnelbuilder archive. Visit www.strabag.com and www.jaegerbau.com. 03/13.