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

HS2 Updates

HS2 Updates

Chiltern tunnel TBMs dismantled - The Dismantling of the two Herrenknecht TBMs - 170m long and weighed 2,000 t - that built HS2 (High Speed Two) Ltd’s Chiltern Tunnel have now been ... More Information

TBM Futura to drive the Rocchetta tunnel on the Naples-Bari HS/HC railway line

Futura will is the name of the second TBM used for the construction of the new Naples-Bari line. The TBM, whose name was chosen by the pupils of the E. Faceltti elementary school in Apice (BN), ... More Information

WTC2025 - Abstract submission deadline extended!

After a successful first call for abstracts WTC2025 is pleased to announce the deadline for submissions has been extended until Thursday June 13th. Take this opportunity to share innovative ideas, ... More Information

Slovenia - Breakthrough of longest railway tunnel in the country!

Slovenia - Breakthrough of longest railway tunnel in the country!

On 29 may 2024 Kolektor Construction and Euro-Asfalt completed excavation of the sixth and longest tunnel of the 2TDK project providing a second track between Divaca and the port of Koper. This ... More Information

TBM Jessie ready to be launched for Sydney Metro West towards Sydney’s CBD

TBM Jessie ready to be launched for Sydney Metro West towards Sydney’s CBD

TBM Jessie,  the first TBM for the Sydney Metro West - Eastern Tunnelling Package,  is about to be launched. It will carve out a 2.3-km tunnel from The Bays to Hunter Street in the ... More Information

Two CRCHI TBMs Launched from opposite directions of the World's Longest Subsea Tunnel

On May 16th, two super-large diameter slurry TBMs, developed by China Railway Construction Heavy Industry Corporation Limited (CRCHI), were launched from opposite directions in Ningbo and Zhoushan ... More Information

BBT - TBM Ida reaches first 3 km of excavation for Lot H41 Sill-Pfons Gorge

On 14 May 2024  the TBM Ida, launched back in June 2023, reached its first 3 km of excavation towards the south, in the West line tunnel, advancing an average of 13 m/day and extracting ... More Information

Final breakthrough for TBM Renny digging the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension

Final breakthrough for TBM Renny digging the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension

Renny, the last West End Connectors’s TBM on the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension (ECWE) project, has officially completed its 6.3-km journey from Renforth Drive to the extraction shaft, ... More Information

Transition Completes the Silvertown Tunnel

Riverlinx CJV - the construction joint venture of Ferrovial Construction, BAM Nuttall and SK ecoplant working on behalf of Transport for London - completed construction works for the connections ... More Information

BTS 2024 Conference & Exhibition - Registration is open

The BTS 2024 Conference and Exhibition is the largest gathering of tunnelling professionals in the UK. Taking place on October 8th – 9th, 2024 at the QEII Conference Centre, Westminster, ... More Information

Hyperbaric excavation for the Casalnuovo tunnel on the HS/HC Napoli-Bari line

Webuild, which was awarded the contract by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (RFI) for the Naples-Cancello lot of the Naples-Bari high-speed/high-capacity railway line, is using hyperbaric excavation ... More Information

Registration now open for ‘Open Days’ at the Modane construction site

Press release - For the first time, the Villarodin-Bourget/Modane underground construction site, where part of the Mont Cenis base tunnel, at the centre of the new Turin-Lyon railway line, is ... More Information

Italy/Sicily: TBM Margherita reaches 1 km of advancement on the Ogliastrillo-Castelbuono section

  At the beginning of May, the TBM Margherita (10 m in diameter and 140 m long) reached 1 km of advancement in the excavation of the odd-numbered track tube of the 6.87 km-long, ... More Information

Final breakthrough for Roseto 1 tunnel, Megalot 3, SS 106 in Italy

Final breakthrough for Roseto 1 tunnel, Megalot 3, SS 106 in Italy

On 10 May 2024 the last northbound piece of the twin-tube rock Roseto 1 tunnel (1.2km) was demolished. The tunnel will be completed using concrete and pre-cast concrete segments for the final ... More Information

Georgia - TBM Caucasus completes 9km tunnel for the Kvesheti-Kobi highway

Georgia - TBM Caucasus completes 9km tunnel for the Kvesheti-Kobi highway

On 23 May 2024 the single shield hard rock TBM, manufactured by CREG and named Caucasus, completed the excavation of the 9 km tunnel, connecting the village of Kvesheti with the village of Kobiin, ... More Information

Toulouse Metro - Line B connection

Work on the Connexion Ligne B is progressing! On Wednesday 15 May - after three months of work - the TBM Clemence Isaure - 30 m long, 5.28 m in diameter and reconditioned by the BESSAC company ... More Information

The ITA tunnelling awards 2024 - Call for entries

The 10th edition of the ITA Tunnelling Awards will take place in Genoa (Italy) on November 28, 2024 at the occasion of the ITA and SIG 50th anniversary celebration organized by the Italian ... More Information

Updates on Watercare Services Limited’s Central Interceptor Project

Updates on Watercare Services Limited’s Central Interceptor Project

In a significant milestone, the TBM Hiwa-i-te-Rangi, nearly 200 meters in length, has successfully breached into a shaft at a depth of 47 meters below ground. This achievement took place at the ... More Information

INTERMAT 2024: an edition driving progress and promoting business

The 2024 edition of the tradeshow, with its redesigned offering and format, registered over its four-day duration 127,500 entries, 21% of which from outside France and from 130 countries. A total ... More Information

TBM for Santiago metro line 7 begins operation in Renca

On Monday 06 May 2024 the ministry of transportation and Santiago metro witnessed the launch ceremony of the TBM EPB christened La Matucana, after an avenue in Quinta Normal municipality. The ... More Information

Sydney Metro – Western Sydney Airport tunnels on homestretch

Mega TBMs constructing the Sydney Metro - Western Sydney Airport southern tunnels are edging closer to their final destinations.     TBMs Eileen and Peggy have built 4.78 ... More Information

TERRATEC delivers another EPBM for Bangkok Metro Purple Line

TERRATEC delivers another EPBM for Bangkok Metro Purple Line

TERRATEC is pleased to announce the delivery of another new 6.39m diameter Earth Pressure Balance Tunnel Boring Machine (EPBM) for the construction of the Bangkok Metro Purple Line (C3). The event ... More Information

The North East Link TBMs to be named after ground breaking women

Help name - by nominating a local legend - the two massive TBMs (length 90 m, diameter 15.6 m and weight 4000t) that will start in 2024 building 6.5km twin tunnels from Watsonia to Bulleen for the ... More Information

Sydney Metro West - TBMs Beatrice and Daphne reach Burwood North

Sydney Metro West - TBMs Beatrice and Daphne reach Burwood North

On the 30th April two TBMs Beatrice and Daphne arrived at Burwood North station site as the 24-km Sydney Metro West twin tunnels connecting Greater Parramatta and the Sydney CBD continue to take ... More Information

Canada - TBM Elsie completed the Broadway subway project

Canada - TBM Elsie completed the Broadway subway project

On April 26, TBM Elsie arrived at Arbutus Station and completed her journey from the future station Great Northern Way-Emily Carr for the Broadway subway project in Vancouver. Click here and ca/38 ... More Information

New FAT tests completed for TBMs that will excavate the Lot 3 and Lot 4 of the Palermo-Catania link

New FAT tests completed for TBMs that will excavate the Lot 3 and Lot 4 of the Palermo-Catania link

On April 19,  another two TBMs - TBM#4 code DZ1379 and TBM#5 code DZ1380 - that will excavate Lot 3 Lercara - Caltanissetta Xirbi, in Sicily, successfully completed the FAT test in ... More Information

Eglinton Crosstown West Extension tunnel boring machine reaches finish line

Eglinton Crosstown West Extension tunnel boring machine reaches finish line

Press release - One of two twin tunnel boring machines digging the western underground segment of the Eglinton Crosstown West Extension has broken through the final ... More Information

Brazil - New milestone reached in the metro Line 2 expansion of the Sao Paulo

Brazil - New milestone reached in the metro Line 2 expansion of the Sao Paulo

On 20/04/2024 the TBM Cora Coralina which is building the 7.3 km tunnels for the metro Line 2-Green extension in Sao Paulo has reached the VSE Coxim shaft. The shaft is an intermediate shaft for ... More Information

USA - Milestone in the construction of the HRBT extension project

USA - Milestone in the construction of the HRBT extension project

On 17th April 2024 TBM Mary broke through the headwall on the North Island at Hampton, completing the first of the two road tunnels for the USD 4bn HRBT expansion project in Virginia. ... More Information

Nepal - Breakthrough in the Nagdhunga tunnel

On 15 April the Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal switched on the electric control for the breakthrough of the 2,688 m Nagdhunga tunnel connecting Sisnekhola of Dhading to Totipakha of ... More Information

The final Sydney Metro West TBMs have arrived

The final Sydney Metro West TBMs have arrived

Sydney Metro West is gearing up to build Sydney’s second under-harbour railway crossing with the final TBMs arriving on site. The two TBMs will carve out the 2.3-km twin tunnels from The Bays, ... More Information

HS2 launches fourth TBM under London building the Northolt Tunnel

HS2 launches fourth TBM under London building the Northolt Tunnel

On April 8th, 2024 construction of the new HS2 line has hit another major milestone with the launch of the fourth – and final – machine being used to build the Northolt tunnel, length ... More Information

Milestones for Eglinton Crosstown West Extension project

The Eglinton Crosstown West Extension project at Toronto has hit two major milestones - Rexy, one of the TBMs has completed 6 kms of tunnelling so far. The other TBM, Renny, has completed just over ... More Information

Central Interceptor TBM reaches 10-km milestone

Central Interceptor TBM reaches 10-km milestone

Hiwa-i-te Rangi TBM has reached the 10-km mark after leaving a site next to Mangere Wastewater Treatment Plant in August 2021, as she heads to Pt Erin, Herne Bay to build the 16.2-km Central ... More Information

TERRATEC delivers a new Rock EBP TBM for Mumbai Sewage Disposal Project

TERRATEC delivers a new Rock EBP TBM for Mumbai Sewage Disposal Project

TERRATEC has delivered a 3.14m Rock EPB TBM for the Mumbai Sewer Disposal Project (MSDP) Stage-II – PST2 in Mumbai, India by J Kumar and Michigan Engineers Private Ltd. (MEPL) Joint Venture ... More Information

Spain - Monte Plano tunnel excavation completed

Spain - Monte Plano tunnel excavation completed

On 27 March 2024, Adif AV completed excavation of the Monte Plano tunnel (1.9 km) on the Olite-Tafalla South section (7.6 km) of the high-speed rail corridor in Navarra. The tunnel - built using the ... More Information

Tunnelling News

Deutsche Bahn awards contract for Munich S-Bahn project

The contract involves structural works for the expansion, including the construction of tunnels and an underground station. The Tunnel Ostbahnhof JV, ... More Information

Excavation completed on Italian side of Brenner Base Tunnel

The tunnel boring machine (TBM) named “Flavia” successfully bored through the Alps beneath the Mules 2–3 section, reaching the Austrian border. More Information

Giant tunnel borer set for Shantou Bay project

A giant tunnel boring machine has been installed for tunnelling under Shantou Bay in Shantou, South China's Guangdong province. [Photo provided to ... More Information

€0.4bn road and tunnel project in Georgia

Work is proceeding on the Kvesheti-Kobi road and tunnel scheme in Georgia. The scheme is part of a larger project, being carried out with Chinese ... More Information

Lahore to transform with Rs49 billion tunnel boring project

Pakistan, April 27 -- The federal government has approved Lahore's Rs49 billion Tunnel Boring Project, marking a major development for the city... More Information

Construction at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport

The 2,100-foot-long tunnel connects the terminal to parking facilities and the tramway leading to the RTA public rail line. During the project, two of ... More Information

AFFHOLDER AND J.F. SHEA TEAM UP ON $700 MILLION CONTRACT

The tunneling subsidiary, Affholder LLC, will lead a joint venture with J.F. Shea Construction, Inc., to build the I-35 Capital Express Central ... More Information

Factory Testing Complete on DC Water's first tunnel boring machine for the Potomac River

Mary passed all the necessary requirements and is one of two TBM's on the project. The tunnel is part of DC Water's Clean Rivers Project, to ... More Information

Work on Chennai Metro tunnel racing to a finish

The machine Flamingo, which started boring in 2023 for the tunnel linking Light House with Thirumayilai, is expected to reach the other end in ... More Information

CPK awards contract to build high-speed rail tunnel in Lodz, Poland

The tunnel, to be constructed using a tunnel boring machine (TBM), will have a ... More Information

Inside HS2: Meet London's miners working on the Northolt tunnels

We are on a tunnel boring machine (TBM) inside High Speed Two's huge Northolt tunnels. These tunnel boring machines are part of a tunnelling ... More Information

Ontario Begins Construction Of Last Tunnel Segment Of The Eglinton Crosstown West Extension

The remaining eastern portion of tunnel construction (500-meter twin tunnels) will use the sequential excavation method, with daily progress of ... More Information

Norway is building the world's longest and deepest subsea road beneath its fjords

We have subsea road tunnels which have that construction. And the new tunnel between Germany and Denmark, there they are laying down cases and put ... More Information

CERN releases report on the feasibility of a possible Future Circular Collider

The estimated cost of construction of the FCC electron–positron stage, including the tunnel and all the infrastructure, is 15 billion Swiss francs... More Information

TBM break through on Auckland's £915M wastewater megaproject completes 16.2km tunnel

Auckland's major wastewater infrastructure project, the Central Interceptor, has reached a significant milestone with the final breakthrough of ... More Information

In pics: construction site of Chongming-Taicang tunnel

A smart assembling vehicle works at "Linghang" large diameter shield tunneling machine at the construction site of the Chongming-Taicang tunnel, part of the Shanghai-Chongqing-Chengdu ... More Information

IN PICTURES: Spectacular images of the removal of HS2's huge tunnelling machine

TBM Sushila was used to construct part of the Northolt Tunnel – an 8.4-mile tunnel ... construction/london-tunnels/progress-3/northolt-tunnel/tbm- ... More Information

Historic tunnels uncovered beneath Salisbury station during £5.3M upgrade project

Engineers from Network Rail and South Western Railway have uncovered a network of tunnels and rooms beneath Salisbury station during ongoing £5.3M upgrades to the station’s forecourt... More Information

Massive $450m road project connecting Russia and Georgia with six bridges & five tunnels

Massive $450m road project connecting Russia and Georgia with six bridges & five tunnels. The new road will pass through Georgia along a trade route ... More Information

Buca Metro Tunnel Excavations Reached 50 Percent Level

Important progress is being made in the construction of the line, where four tunnel boring machines (TBMs), each 100 meters long, 7 meters wide and ... More Information

'Very promising' narrow-reef boring technology nearing rollout stage

A novel tunnel boring machine (TBM) will open up Bokoni's narrow tabular dipping PGM orebody to allow narrow-reef boring to take place, so that ... More Information

A vast undersea tunnel is being built

The 7.4 billion-euro ($7.7 billion) project is a huge undertaking, in every sense. Each section of the tunnel is colossal. These concrete structures ... More Information

National Grid gets planning permission for Grain to Tilbury upgrade with new Thames tunnel

National Grid has secured full planning approval for the Grain to Tilbury project, which includes a new power tunnel under the River Thames... More Information

Right track tunnel of Huangjialing Tunnel in NW China's Gansu drilled through

A staff member works on the construction site of the right track tunnel of the Huangjialing Tunnel in Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture, northwest ... More Information

Shetland Islands tunnels plan takes 'huge step forward' with sonar investigations

This phase will further inform the project's development and feasibility. The tunnel project, seen by locals as pivotal for improving ... More Information

Construction of the Tarande tunnel begins next week

On March 17th, in Vilnius district Construction of a tunnel and other related infrastructure will begin at Taranda and Bukiškis. This project aims ... More Information

Delhi Metro's Golden Line achieves major tunnel breakthrough;

The construction of Delhi Metro's Golden Line achieved a major milestone on Thursday as the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) broke through at the ... More Information

RiverRenew Tunnel Project Nearing Completion

The RiverRenew Tunnel System Project, the largest infrastructure investment in Alexandria's history, is nearing completion. More Information

Sydney Metro West tunnels enter final stretch after big breakthrough

Two tunnel boring machines (TBMs) constructing the huge Sydney Metro West tunnels have made a smashing entrance 24 metres below the surface. More Information

Chennai Metro Rail launches first tunnel boring machine for underground tunnelling in Kolathur

Corridor 5 begins at Madhavaram Milk Colony and connects through Koyambedu, Porur, Alandur and other residential/commercial areas of the city to ... More Information

Element Six, Master Drilling Announce Tunnel Development Partnership

Element Six and Master Drilling will deliver a diamond-enabled solution designed to increase tunneling development speed, reducing costs and minimize the environmental impact of tunnel ... More Information

Gateway Project Tunnel Connecting NY and NJ Moves Forward

Five Gateway contracts have been awarded so far, including one on Predergast's first day for construction on the Manhattan side of the tunnel... More Information

HSR Xi'an – Yan'an: Completion of All Tunnels in the Project

The HSR Xi'an – Yan'an has completed the excavation of all tunnels, including the Tongchuan Tunnel. This is a key milestone in the construction ... More Information

Brazil's US$1bn underwater tunnel project making waves among potential bidders

The first underwater road tunnel project in Brazil is attracting interest from multiple potential bidders, an official familiar with the matter ... More Information

Element Six and Master Drilling Announce Strategic Partnership for Advanced Tunnel

Achieving high quality, nonexplosive tunnel construction with various aspects of value generated compared to traditional rock excavation methods is a ... More Information

Tutor Perini Wins a $1.2 Billion NYC Contract

A joint venture of Sylmar-based civil construction firm Tutor Perini Corp. and its subsidiary Frontier-Kemper Constructors has won a $1.18 billion contract to construct a pair of rail ... More Information

Milestone reached for $1.6b Auckland wastewater tunne

Watercare's Central Interceptor project has passed an historic milestone with the southern half of the 16.2 kilometre tunnel – Blockhouse Bay ... More Information

Elon Musk's 'Wormhole' Tunnel Promises To Carry 20,000 People Per Hour In Dubai

It’s been more than eight years since Elon Musk decided he was fed up with traffic and declared he’d start digging tunnels to revolutionize public transport across the United States. So ... More Information

First tender for Dubai’s $22bn tunnels due within days

Dubai Municipality is expected to tender the first two packages of the $22bn Dubai Strategic Sewerage Tunnels (DSST) project imminently... More Information