Tunnelbuilder Promoting the world's tunnelling industry to a huge qualified audience

View the Spanish Tunnelbuilder website View the Italian Tunnelbuilder website

Archive - News

Featured News

Grand Paris Express - New breakthrough on Line 15 South

Grand Paris Express  - New breakthrough on Line 15 South

After 3.4 km of excavation, the Amandine TBM arrived at Villejuif Louis-Aragon. The TBM began tunnelling in April 2019, it broke through at the underground enclosure of the future railway station ... More Information

New Berlin U5-Bahn line opened

New Berlin U5-Bahn line opened

The new U5 underground railway line in Berlin has now been opened. The Lückenschluss U5 (U5 Gap Closure) has been successfully completed after approximately 8 years of construction ... More Information

TBM Annie begins tunnelling for Tideway

TBM Annie begins tunnelling for Tideway

ON 04/12/2020 the TBM Annie which is 6.4 m wide, 100m long and 960t in weight - began driving the 4.5km connection tunnel between Greenwich Pumping Station and the main super sewer at Chambers ... More Information

Winners of the ITA tunnelling awards 2020

The winners of the ITA tunnelling awards 2020 are :- MAJOR PROJECT OF THE YEAR (OVER €500M) John Holland CPB Ghella Joint Venture Tunnelling and Station Excavation Works for the Sydney ... More Information

Strata Worldwide announces the appointment of Mike Rispin to lead Strata Tunnelling

Strata Worldwide announces the appointment of  Mike Rispin to lead Strata Tunnelling

Strata Worldwide is pleased to announce the appointment of Mike Rispin to lead the launch of Strata’s new global division, Strata Tunneling. Mike brings over 36 years of ... More Information

TBM Gaia’s Shield lifted out of excavation shaft

TBM Gaia’s Shield lifted out of excavation shaft

On December 2nd  the shield for the TBM Gaia weighing 150 tons and 11 m in diameter was lifted out of the receiving shaft of the Rijnland Route. The rest of the TBM will be dismantled ... More Information

Central section of London’s super sewer complete as TBM breaks into shaft in Bermondsey

Central section of London’s super sewer complete as TBM breaks into shaft in Bermondsey

TBM Ursula has officially broken into the shaft at Bermondsey finishing her 7.6km journey from Battersea to Bermondsey and completing the central section of the Tideway in London, delivered by a ... More Information

San Gorgonio Pass Water Agency Investment into future water supplies

San Gorgonio Pass Water Agency Investment into future water supplies

In November the SGPWA (San Gorgonio Pass Water Agency) Board voted unanimously to support the Delta Conveyance Project (DCP) in California, approving a minimum 1.22% participation level in the DCP ... More Information

TERRATEC TBMs breakthrough on Pune Metro

TERRATEC TBMs breakthrough on Pune Metro

Gulermak-TATA Projects JV celebrates the breakthrough of TBM tunnelling on the underground works on Line 1 of the Pune Metro, in India. In early-November, TERRATEC joined officials from ... More Information

Cross River Rail’s first mega machine ready to go

Cross River Rail’s first mega machine ready to go

The first of the two TBMs that will excavate the bulk of Cross River Rail’s 5.9km twin tunnels is passing factory acceptance testing, before being disassembled and transported by trucks to ... More Information

Government gives green light to A303 Stonehenge improvement

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps has given the formal green light by granting a Development Consent Order for work to start on the A303 Amesbury to Berwick Down (Stonehenge) ... More Information

Press release - Barge number 238 delivers final concrete segment rings to Tideway’s Kirtling Street

The 238th and final barge delivering concrete segment rings used to line the central section of the Thames Tideway Tunnel has arrived at Tideway’s Kirtling Street site. Each barge ... More Information

4-day HS2 Ltd virtual event for contract opportunities begins

HS2 Ltd, the company delivering Britain’s new high speed railway, kicked off a four-day event yesterday that will showcase many of the EUR13.49 bn (GBP12bn) worth of contract opportunities. ... More Information

Several milestones for the Grand Paris Express

Several milestones for the Grand Paris Express

TBM Ines, began its journey from the Verdun shaft  at La Courneuve on the 11/08/2020, and has now reached Le Bourget RER station for Line 16.  The TBM – which is 100 m long and ... More Information

Robbins Webinar - Encountering Caverns in France: TBM Tunnelling in Karst Conditions

Robbins Webinar - Encountering Caverns in France: TBM Tunnelling in Karst Conditions

France's recently completed Galerie des Janots featured some unexpected challenges: Karst cavities large and small were found throughout the bore as well as two large, uncharted caverns. During ... More Information

Moscow’s light green line updates

Moscow’s light green line  updates

This week construction of the left and second tunnel began, A route that will go from Lianozovo to Phystech station for the Lyublinsko-Dmitrovskaya metro line or light green line in Moscow.  ... More Information

TBM Coline crosses the 1,000 metre mark!

TBM Coline crosses the 1,000 metre mark!

After having crossed the "Saint-Genis-Laval - Hôpitaux Sud" station at the beginning of July, the tunnel boring machine crossed the 1,000-metre mark last Friday 13/11/2020.  The TBM is ... More Information

6th edition of the ITA Tunnelling and Underground Space Awards

On the 3-4 December 2020 you will be able to attend the presentations of the finalists and the announcement of the winners. This year the 6th edition of the ITA Tunnelling Awards will move into a ... More Information

Press release - Works to kick off on the Suburban Rail Loop

The Andrews Labor Government is delivering the Suburban Rail Loop, unveiling a huge Budget boost that will pave the way for the biggest rail project ever built in Victoria – and help drive our ... More Information

TBM Meg is on her way to State Library Station

TBM Meg is on her way to State Library Station

Last week TBM Meg was relaunched from the Metro Tunnel's Parkville Station site towards the CBD, to complete the second tunnel. It follows the relaunch of TBM Joan, which began a parallel 1 km ... More Information

Federal Council approves the Rhine tunnel project in Basel

At its meeting on 11 November 2020, the Federal Council approved the general project for the Basel Rhine tunnel. The new tunnel will relieve the frequently congested A2/A3 between the Hagnau and ... More Information

Insight into finalist for ITA ‘Overcoming the Challenge’ category

Insight into finalist for ITA ‘Overcoming the Challenge’ category

The Mexico City-Toluca interurban rail line project has been shortlisted as a finalist for the ITA tunnelling awards in the category “Overcoming the Challenge’  - High performance ... More Information

Highways England -Lower Thames Crossing Update

Highways England is inviting tenders to build the longest road tunnel in Britain that sits at the heart of the proposed Lower Thames Crossing, the most ambitious road project for a generation. ... More Information

Snowy 2.0: first TBM components arrive at site of Australia’s biggest Hydropower Project

Snowy 2.0: first TBM components arrive at site of Australia’s biggest Hydropower Project

Throughout the beginning November a huge 750-t crane has been lowering into place the giant front shield parts of the first of the three Snowy 2.0 TBMs. Snowy 2.0 is the largest renewable energy ... More Information

BBT - First breakthrough under the Isarco river

 BBT - First breakthrough under the Isarco river

On  the 6th of November 2020 an excavator with hydraulic hammer  broke through  the first 59 m tunnel under the Isarco river. The ground in the most southern construction lot of the ... More Information

Rijnland Route Updates

On 01/09/20 after 3.5 months of excavation and a month ahead of schedule, the TBM called Gaia completed the second tunnel tube for the Rijnland Route. The TBM covered a distance of 2,250 m, from ... More Information

New milestones for Tideway

New milestones for Tideway

Connection Tunnel Excavated at Cremorne Wharf - Cremorne Wharf Depot became the latest site in the central section of the Tideway project to connect to the main 'super sewer' tunnel as ... More Information

COMPLIMENTARY ROBBINS WEBINAR - TUNNELLING PAST THE VOIDS

COMPLIMENTARY ROBBINS WEBINAR - TUNNELLING PAST THE VOIDS

France's recently completed Galerie des Janots was the scene of some unforeseen challenges.  During excavation with a Main Beam TBM, crews encountered a stalagmite studded 8,000 cubic meter ... More Information

Sotecnisol Press Release - Tunnel Waterproofing

Sotecnisol Press Release - Tunnel Waterproofing

For over the last 50 years, Sotecnisol led the waterproofing market in Portugal and has grown a strong presence in other countries, namely in tunnel drainage and water proofing with PVC ... More Information

Virginia Launched Largest Infrastructure Project in Commonwealth’s History

Virginia Launched Largest Infrastructure Project in Commonwealth’s History

On 29/10/20 Governor Ralph Northam joined the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and state and local leaders to break ground on the Hampton Roads Bridge-Tunnel (HRBT) Expansion Project. ... More Information

HS2 launches first virtual ‘Meet the Contractor’ event

Registrations now open for over 1,000 one-to-one meetings with HS2 contractors.  HS2 Ltd’s third annual ‘Meet the Contractor’ event takes place between 23rd-26th November ... More Information

TUNNELMESH – 100% WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY FOR TUNNELS

TUNNELMESH – 100% WIRELESS CONNECTIVITY FOR TUNNELS

A modern, safe, resilient, and reliable communication system is a key component of any confined space, mine, or tunnel access safety system. Tunnel workers rely on regular contact with their ... More Information

Results of the Purple Line Extension Section 3 TBM art and naming contest

Metro has selected the winners of its art and naming contest for its third and final set of tunnel boring machines that will dig twin Purple Line Extension subway tunnels between Westwood and ... More Information

Melbourne Metro Tunnel Project Updates

TBM Joan - On the 20/10/20 TBM  Joan began its 1 km journey from the Parkville Station site to the new State Library Station site of the Melbourne metro. Named after Victoria’s ... More Information

BBT - Isarco river underpass tunnelling begins

BBT - Isarco river underpass tunnelling begins

After months of preparation on the Isarco River Underpass construction site, the excavation of the first few metres of the tunnel has begun.   The excavation works in this southernmost ... More Information

Designs for HS2 Canterbury Works vent shaft and headhouse revealed

On 27/10/2020 HS2 revealed updated designs for the Canterbury Works vent shaft headhouse and compound, in South Kilburn, London.  It will be one of four structures that will be built to provide ... More Information

Tunnelling News

$16bn Hudson Tunnel project could pause again 'in two to three months'

Components of the first tunnel boring machine (TBM) that will be used for the Palisades Tunnel Project arrived at ... More Information

Hinkley Point C | TBM readied for 620m long fish return tunnel

The tunnel boring machine (TBM) that will excavate the fish return tunnel has been christened Sarah Guppy by local schoolchildren, in tribute to ... More Information

Bhopal Metro's Orange Line Tunnelling Begins

The Bhopal Metro project has recently reached an important milestone as tunnel boring machines (TBMs) have been positioned to begin digging work on ... More Information

A Chinese team rescued a $50M tunnel machine stuck 177 feet underground

Chinese engineers have pulled off a stunning rescue, saving a tunnel boring machine (TBM) stuck 177 feet underground beneath the Yangtze River. More Information

Fort Smith named finalist in Elon Musk's Boring Company tunnel challenge

The company selected Fort Smith's proposal from 487 applicants. The company says the winning project will receive construction of a one-mile tunnel ... More Information

Bengaluru: Four infrastructure firms bid for Hebbal short tunnel

Bengaluru infrastructure: Four firms, including Dilip Buildcon and Max Infra, bid for BDA's Rs 1086 crore Hebbal short tunnel project... More Information

TBM readied for Montreal's Blue Line extension

A custom-made 9.7m-diameter tunnel boring machine (TBM) has been assembled and lowered ready to excavate the tube from the future Vertières stop to ... More Information

$11.5B Brenner Base Tunnel Nears End of TBM Excavation

With TBMs Olga and Wilma closing in, the 55-km rail project shifts from excavation to systems integration ahead of its planned 2028 opening beneath ... More Information

$6.75 Billion Unlocked for Turkey's Bosphorus Rail Project

Multiple Earth Pressure Balance (EPB) Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) will need to be mobilized to carve out the subterranean corridors leading up to ... More Information

Tunneling for Nashville's underground Tesla project has begun

The Boring Company said that the first three weeks of the project will consist of the Prufrock-MB1, a machine that will help carve out the tunnel, ... More Information

Hudson Tunnel Project construction resumes

I look forward to celebrating the launch of our tunnel boring machines through the Palisades once GDC has assurance it will receive the steady flow ... More Information

Lower Thames Crossing

British suppliers could meet 90% of low carbon steel requirements. The proposed machine would be 16.4m in diameter, large enough to create a three‑lane tunnel bore, and is intended to dig ... More Information

Inside the Tunnel Boring Machine, Southampton Link Main project

A six-tonne tunnel boring machine is digging deep below the ground in Hampshire to help keep the county's taps and rivers flowing... More Information

TBM maestro inspects sites ahead of massive tunnel drive

The first machine components have arrived for the tunnel boring machines (TBMs) to be deployed on the Suburban Connect sites in Melbourne. More Information

Metrolinx provides major updates on subway and LRT projects across the GTA

Tunnel boring is advancing on multiple projects, with Scarborough's TBM ... Metrolinx says “Diggy Scardust,” the project's tunnel boring machine, is now ... More Information

Work in Progress: High-tech TBMs ready to carve underground corridor

The Bhopal Metro Rail Project is transitioning into its most challenging and sophisticated phase as two state-of-the-art Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs) ... More Information

Sarens helps extract TBM at BC water supply project

The Annacis Water Supply Tunnel Project aims to increase the reliability and capacity of the water supply system in New Westminster, British Columbia. When complete, the tunnel will ... More Information

Judge rules in favor of New York and New Jersey for now in $16B tunnel fight with Trump

A federal judge ruled Friday to temporarily block the Trump administration from suspending federal disbursements for the Gateway Tunnel Project... More Information

Webuild: award for Sustainability Report for commitment to decarbonise through innovation

This includes the large tunnel-boring machines deployed on some of Europe's most complex projects: from the Salerno-Reggio Calabria ... More Information

Clearwater update reports initial entry area is 'stable and intact'

The tunnel boring machine being used in the project remains trapped underground just ahead of where the breach occurred. The ambitious, $630 ... More Information

Tunnel Boring Machine Market Size estimated at USD 7.08 Billion

The Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) market is experiencing significant growth, driven by increasing urbanization, infrastructure development, ... More Information

Completing the First Section of Line 3: Tunnel Boring Machine Roars as it Emerges at Balboa

The Panama tunnel boring machine emerged and completed its first major task: the first section of the Line 3 Metro tunnel. More Information

Twin tunnel-boring titans prepare to dig new road under Sydney Harbour

Twin tunnel-boring titans are preparing to launch under Sydney Harbour to dig out a new road crossing from Birchgrove to Waverton... More Information

Monica Breaks Ground on Snowy 2.0

Monica the tunnel boring machine, with the renewable energy mega-project now more. TBM Monica is among the world's most advanced tunnel boring machines... More Information

Snowy 2.0 sets new tunnel boring machine to work, completes 46 underground concrete pours

Snowy 2.0 has set to work a fourth tunnel boring machine, a $75 million piece of drilling equipment purpose built to complete excavation of the huge pumped hydro project’s “geologically ... More Information

World's 'largest' underground assembly of tunnelling machines happening beneath Sydney

Workers are craning into place about 167 major pieces that will form the first of two giant boring machines. Once assembled like giant Meccano sets, ... More Information

Tunneling Begins on Major Water Pipeline for South Hillsborough

TAMPA, Fla. — Tampa Bay Water has begun construction on a major underground pipeline project aimed at meeting rising water demand in southern Hillsborough County, where population growth ... More Information

The massive £3billion tunnel designed to connect two continents under the sea

The construction of a huge underwater multi-tiered tunnel is underway in Turkey, that will create a direct route from Asia to Europe - and is expected to carry 1.3 million passengers a ... More Information

Riederwald Tunnel in Frankfurt is further delayed

Traffic was supposed to start flowing through the controversial Riederwald Tunnel in Frankfurt in 2033. But that's unlikely to happen. The €1.5 billion project is facing further delays – ... More Information

What happens to our metro tunnel boring machines when they hit the end of the line?

These mechanical behemoths were Betty and Dorothy, the tunnel boring machines tasked with digging the Sydney Metro West tunnels. Loading. The ... More Information

The incredible £2.8bn underwater tunnel connecting Europe and Asia

A huge new tunnel will connect Europe and Asia - and construction has already started. The Great Istanbul Tunnel is a major project. It will carry ... More Information

China develops "smart brain" for tunnel boring machines to boost underground construction

A team from Hunan University in central China has collaboratively developed an intelligent operating system for tunnel boring machines, giving these massive underground giants a "smart ... More Information

How China rescued highway project under Yangtze River

The incident occurred in February 2023 during construction of the 6.4-kilometer Jiangyin–Jingjiang Yangtze River Tunnel. Midway through excavation, at ... More Information

HS2 final tunnel drive to Euston starts next week

A team from SCS will drive a 4.5-mile twin-bore tunnel linking Old Oak Common to Euston using two tunnel boring machines, Karen and Madeleine. More Information

Work begins on £48M Knutsford sewer upgrade featuring 1.8km stormwater tunnel

Sean Reid, United Utilities county business lead for wastewater in Cheshire said: “This project highlights our ongoing commitment to improving water ... More Information

$14.6M boost moves Gering–Fort Laramie Canal Tunnel project forward

After nearly six years of planning, construction is moving forward on the Gering–Fort Laramie Canal tunnels... More Information

Webuild: second breakthrough at Trebisacce Tunnel along Jonica State Road 106

Project will help transform Jonica State Road 106 into a strategic corridor linking Ionian coasts of Calabria, Basilicata and Puglia... More Information

Ground preparation for Lower Thames Crossing tunnelling

Work is ongoing to overcome sub-optimal ground conditions in preparation for the start of tunnelling on the Lower Thames Crossing in late 2028, according to the project’s tunnels director... More Information

LA Metro approves massive $25B underground rail line to bypass 405 Freeway

The LA Metro Board unanimously approved an underground heavy rail line to connect the San Fernando Valley and the Westside, bypassing the congested 405 Freeway. The nearly 13-mile route, ... More Information