Total length 25 km with an estimated project cost of $200 million. Land leases to be made available along the line to help pay. The Shenyang government was also seeking $100 million in government or commercial loans. Contact Wu Huadong at Shenyang Light Rail Project Office or Wang Rongle, Liaoning Province, 1 Deshengmenwai Dajie, Liaoning Hotel, China 100088. November 1999.  Construction of the Shenyang metro is scheduled to commence at the end of this year. An estimated US$1.2 billion will be invested in the project and the planned length will be 21.7 km. There will be 17 stations. Construction is scheduled to complete in 2006. 38/02.Daewoo Construction intends to enter into a tie-up with the northeastern Chinese city of Shenyang to build the first metro in the city with a total investment of 9.48 billion yuan. The 22 km line will have an average investment of 430 million yuan per km. Construction is expected to start in September. The local government will invest 4 billion yuan, or 43 % of the total investment over a four-year period. The city is considering borrowing funds from the State Development Bank, the China Construction Bank, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and Japan's Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund. Visit www.dwconst.co.kr/homepage/daewoo_eng/index.html 36/03.

  13.5 km eastern extension of Line 1 along Changâ€â„¢an Street between Xidan and Bawangfen which has been under construction since 1996 should be completed by May, 2000 at a cost of $0.9 billion. Test operations underway on 10.7 km section between West Tianâ€â„¢anmen Square and Sihui and work proceeding on section between Tianâ€â„¢anmen Square and Xidan. Westside South-North Line with total length of 19.5 km under feasibility study. Contact Gao Yucai, MD, Beijing Mass Transit Railway Corporation, No 2 Beiheyan Road, Xicheng District, Beijing, China 100044, tel +86 10 832 0560, fax 832 0077. November 1999. Metro line 5 will be constructed by Beijing Underground Construction Group Pte Ltd using new 6.2 m-diameter Herrenknecht EPB value $5 million. Visit www.herrenknecht.com May 2000.Five sections of Line 5 from Dongdan north to Yonghegong will be constructed by Beijing Underground Construction Group using a new Herrenknecht 6.2 m-diameter EPB scheduled for delivery November, 2000. Lining will comprise six-piece 1.2 m-wide segmental concrete rings with i.d. 5.4 m. The first job in January, 2001 will be a test tunnel from Beixinqiao to Yonghegong in Quaternary clayey soil with sand, gravel and silt with 25 mm maximum particle size where the water table is at 6 m to 10 m below surface level. Visit www.herrenknecht.com June 2000.   Beijing No 5 Subway Line Investment Co Ltd, 37.5% owned by SNC-Lavalin, has secured $1.45 billion funding to start five-year construction of 27.6 km-long No 5 line. Final design approved for link between Songjiazhuang in Fengtai district in the south to Taipingzhuang in Changping district in the north, and 700 m-long test section is under construction. Visit www.snc-lavalin.com and www.herrenknecht.com 18/01. Herrenknecht reports 6.2 m EPB launch from shaft at Lama Temple for 680 m drive to Beixinqiao Station at an average depth of 20 m in silty clays, fine sands and gravels with maximum water table 10 m above crown. First 60 m completed using screw conveyor to skips, then backup taken underground and connected. Precast concrete ring with straight, right and left segments, 1.2 m-long and 300 mm-thick. Average 2 rings/12h-day, max 3 rings during launch. Non-cement grout pumped from surface to tailskin. Herrenknecht responsible for first 100 m of excavation including site set-up, settlement control, ring quality and training. Visit www.herrenknecht.com 31/01.   Construction of No. 13 subway line between Beijing urban ring and international airport announced at 5th Beijing-Hong Kong Economic Co-operation Symposium. Line will be 18.15 km-long with 1.63 km at grade, 12.82 km elevated, and 3.7 km underground, and will start driving north-east at Wangjingxi station and have nine stations. Cost estimated at 4.3 billion yuan for construction between January, 2002 and December, 2004. Overseas investment invited. Visit www.xinhua.net 45/01.  Beijing Construction Engineering Co. Ltd. and Bilfinger+Berger are to invest a further US$9 million in their jv Chang Cheng Bilfinger Berger Construction Engineering Corp. Ltd. to lobby for the construction of Beijing's No. 5 subway line. The north-south 27.7 km No. 5 metro line is urgently needed by Beijing as it will be the main artery between the city's southern areas and its north, where the Olympic Games village will be located. 10/02.Plans have been approved for Line 10 of the Beijing Metro and construction work is expected to begin at the end of this year. Phase one, which also includes the Olympic Extension, will run largely underground. It will be 24.59 km-long with 22 underground stations while the Olympic Extension will be 5.91 km long and have four underground stations. Altogether, the 33 km line will have 28 stations, of which 27 stations will be constructed underground. Line 10 will pass through the Central Business District and will intersect with Lines 1, 4 and 5 and the City Rail Line System. Tenders for various engineering and civil work contracts are being invited and completion is scheduled before the Beijing Olympic Games in 2008. The total investment is estimated at US$873.25 million. 45/03.MTR Corporation, Hong Kong's metro operator, has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Beijing Infrastructure Investment Co. Ltd and Beijing Capital Group to form a Public-Private Partnership (PPP) for construction and operation of Line 4. The total investment for metro line 4 is about USD1.9 billion. The 28.65 km line is underground, running from south of the fourth ring road at Majialou Station to north of the Summer Xuan Sun Wu, Xi Cheng and Hai Dian Districts. It will be Beijing's main north-south traffic artery and one of the major infrastructure projects for the 2008 Olympic Games. Visit www.mtr.com.hk 20/04.Bernold-Ceresola has been awarded the contract to supply six sets of 6,000 mm stationary moulds by Beijing Ruibo Cement Products for the concrete segments of the Beijing metro line 4. Visit www.bernold-ceresola.com 21/04.The Beijing metro Olympic extension construction contract has been awarded to a joint venture comprising China Railway Engineering Company, China Railway Electrify Bureau Group Company and China Railway Third Bureau Group Company. The BOT contract is valued at USD133.53 million. The Olympic extension on Line 10 will be 4.34 km long and the entire line will run underground. There will be four stations and it will be the only metro line reaching the central area of the Olympic Park. Completion is scheduled for June 2008. 25/05.

Chinese firm Hollysys Automation Technologies will supply a subway signalling system for the Changping Line of the Beijing Subway network. The EUR38 million (RMB326 m) contract was awarded by state-owned rail operator Beijing Mass Transit Railway Operation. Work includes providing engineering, procurement and construction services for the signalling system. The 31.24 km-long, 11-station metro extends north from Xi'erqi station on Line 13 to the Thirteen Tombs Scenic Area, linking the central Changping District with the Beijing Subway network. First installation phase is expected to be completed in 2010, and second phase in 2012. Visit www.hollysys.com.sg. 48/09.

Total length of 16.5 km. Contact Director of the General Division, Qingdao Urban and Country Construction Division, No 7 Yishui Road, Qingdao, China 266001 or Xing Tongfu, Shandong Province, Madian, Beitaipingzhuang, Haidain District, China 100088, tel +86 532 201 1064, fax 201 1066. November 1999.

  Completion reported on August 22nd, 1999 of 18 km-long twin tunnels in remote region using drill/blast for one tube and two Wirth 8.8 m hardrock TBMs from the portals for the other. The TBMs drove a total of 10.9 km in 19 months and the drill/blast teams completed 25 km, all in extremely hard granite and gneiss formations of UCS averaging between 150 and 250 Mpa and peaking at 325 Mpa. TBM average progress was 338 m/month with a best of 518 m. Best day, 35 m in 9.3 hours. The drill/blast teams completed their own tunnel and broke back onto the TBM tunnel alignment in order to meet the advancing machines and speed up completion. Sept 1999.

  Construction commenced on 16.8 km-long Line 1 running north-south through city centre linking Maigaoqiao, Xinjiekuo and Xiaohang with 13 stations. Eight stations and 10.2 km of line will be underground. Due for completion in five years, but section from southern terminus at Xiaohang to Sanshanjie will open end-2000. Sept 1999.   Work started following lifting of four-year government embargo on new metro construction. Sept 1999.   Municipal funds will pay for one third of total $700 million project cost. The authorities prefer to deal with consortia and soft loans as a means for project financing. Contact Peng Changsheng, Director, Nanjing Preparatory Office of Underground Railway, No 7 Beijing XI Road, Nanjing, China 210008. November 1999.   First section now under construction through major commercial centres of city to carry 470,000 passengers/day. Visit www.xinhua.com 16/01.  Line 2 first phase feasibility report submitted for approval by municipal development planning committee. 26.6 km-long west-east subway will have 22 stations. Visit www.xinhua.com 41/01.

Harza Engineering reviewing designs for hydraulic system and equipment for Tongbai project with two 1.3 km x 9 m-diameter tunnels to connect reservoirs to powerhouse. Work due to start this year using local contractors. Visit www.harza.com May 2000.

Work scheduled to start in October, 1999 on missing section to the east of the city which will be 22 km long and have 17 stations. May 1999.

Government seeking overseas investment to build 3.76 km artery to include tunnel under the Yangtze river to relieve congestion. BOT basis over eight years is suggested. March 1999.  Immersed tunnel across the Yangtze river approved by the State Council and the State Development Planning Commission. The 3.6 km tunnel will consist of three tubes, two for a two-lane highway and one for the two-track Line 2 of the metro. Estimated cost US$218 million. Construction is to start this year. Time frame for construction is four years. 24/02.

  Double-stack container 30.5 km West Rail link through northwest New Territories with 3.6 km tunnel at Ching Cheung Road/Wing Shun Street and 5.7 km tunnel at Castle Peak Road/Kam Tin Valley. Five design/build contracts expected September, 1998. Bored and cut/cover. Expected start 1999 with completion 2003. Second phase to extend route 20 km to Shenzhen border for completion 2011. Client: Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation. April 1998.   Five original design packages split into 12 contracts worth HK$30 bn and tenders imminent. Two of these are for Tai Lam tunnel. Nov 1998.   1.8 km x 8.75 m diameter twin-tube Kwai Tsing/Tsing Tsuen tunnel to be driven in mixed ground by jv of Dragages & Travaux Publics (Bouyges) and Zen Pacific using NFM EPB/hardrock TBM with semi-automatic segment erector to be delivered end-1999. Also incuded in this contract is the 1.7 km Ha Kwai Chung tunnel and a short cut-and-cover section. 5.5 km Tai Lam tunnel between Tsuen Wan and Kam Tin awarded to jv of Nishimatsu and Dragages & Travaux Publics. All tunnels scheduled for completion December, 2002. February 1999.   Nishimatsu/Dragages-Bouygues jv to use two new generation Atlas Copco WL 3C drillrigs with full drilling automation for 5.5 km Tai Lam tunnel. Contract involves drill/blast excavation of 700,000 cu m for tunnel and stations. December 1999. NFM reports its 8.75 m EPB with automatic segment erection on KCRC has completed 1 km to date in 200 MPa gneiss and recorded 300 m in August, comfortably meeting planned progress rates. Visit www.framatome.fr October 2000.Drill/blast excavation completed on 24th March, 2001 when Dragages et Travaux Publics (H.K) junctioned with Nishimatsu Construction on programme and within 25 mm at the mid point of the 5.5 km-long Tai Lam Tunnel. Visit www.nishimatsu.co.jp 14/01.Tenders have been invited by the Hong Kong government for the Kowloon Southern Link (KSL) of the West Rail. This is a 4.5 km underground rail section that will link up the West Rail terminus from Nam Cheong station to the East Rail at Tsim Sha Tsui station. The stretch from Nam Cheong to West Kowloon and another section underneath Salisbury Road will be mainly constructed by the cut-and-cover method. The tunnel along Canton Road will be bored to mitigate traffic disturbance. Estimated cost is HKD $8.3 billion. Construction start in early 2005 for completion in early 2009. Visit www.info.gov.hk and www.kcrc.com 19/04.The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) has combined contracts KDB-300 and KDB-400 into a single contract as part of the northern section of the 3.8 km Kowloon Southern Link (KSL). The northern section includes 1.9 km of tunnel using cut-and-cover, drill/blast or a TBM from Jordan Road to the West Rail terminus at Nam Cheong station. The five groups invited to bid for the building of contract KDB-300/400 (northern section) are: Balfour Beatty Gammon; China State Construction Engineering Corp. / Costain; Kier; Paul Y / Penta Ocean; and Maeda / Barbican Construction.The project also includes a southern section, as part of contract KDB-200, which includes 1.2 km of twin tunnels between Canton Road and Jordan Road, using a TBM, and West Kowloon station. The four groups invited to bid for the design and building of contract KDB-200 (southern section) are: Nishimatsu and Ove Arup as designer; Leighton, Balfour Beatty Gammon, Kumagai Gumi and John Holland with Mott Connell and Meinhardt as designers; Dragages, China State and Leader with Maunsell, Black & Veatch and Coffey as designers; and Paul Y, SELI and Maeda with Atkins China and Parsons Brinckerhoff as designers. Subscribe to E-News Weekly 48/2004 & 35/2004. Visit www.kcrc.com 53/04-01/05.The Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) announced the award of three major civil construction contracts for Kowloon Southern Link at a combined value of about HKD3.1 billion. The contracts to design and build the northern section from Nam Cheong station to Yau Ma Tei ventilation building (contract KBD-400) and from Yau Ma Tei ventilation building to West Kowloon station at Jordan Road (contract KBD-300) were both awarded to China State Construction Engineering (Hong Kong) Ltd. at a price of about HKD636 million and HKD447 million respectively. The northern section comprises the construction of 1.9 km of tunnel, using cut-and-cover or drill-and-blast techniques from the West Rail terminus at Nam Cheong station to Jordan Road. Visit www.cscechk.com/main_e.htm 33-34/05.Contract KBD-200 to design and build the southern section from West Kowloon station to East Tsim Sha Tsui station and West Kowloon station was awarded to a JV which comprises Leighton Contractors, Balfour Beatty, Gammon, Kumagai Gumi and John Holland, at a price of about HKD2,018 million. The southern section involves the excavation of 1.1 km of twin tunnels, of which 740 m between Jordan Road and Canton Road using a massive mixed ground TBM, and the cut-and-cover method along Salisbury Road. The civil, structural, geotechnical and mechanical and electrical design has been commissioned to Mott Connell and Meinhardt. Visit www.leightoncontractors.com.au, www.balfourbeatty.com, www.mottconnell.com.hk and www.meinhardt.com.au 33-34/05.The 3.8 km-long rail section will connect Nam Cheong station, the southern terminus of West Rail, with East Tsim Sha Tsui station of East Rail, with an intermediate station at West Kowloon. Upon its completion in 2009, passengers will only take 30 minutes to travel from Tin Shui Wai to Tsim Sha Tsui East. Read E-News Weekly 48/2004, 35/2004 & 40/2002. Click cn/21. Visit www.kcrc.com 33-34/05.Invitation to tender, deadline 14th October, 2005 for supply and installation of a tunnel ventilation system to support the railway operation in the Kowloon Southern Link project, and modifications to the existing tunnel ventilation control systems across the West Rail and Tsim Sha Tsui extension. Visit www.kcrc.com/eng/corporate/business/tender.asp?ref=16028 or contact Johnny Tam, Senior Manager - Procurement & Contracts, Project Support Department, Capital Projects Division, Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation, KCRC Hung Hom Building, 8 Cheong Wan Road, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong. Tel. +852 21636186, fax +852 27661093. 35/05.The Link 200 JV including Leighton Contractors, its affiliate John Holland, Balfour Beatty, its affiliate Gammon Construction, and Kumagai will use a Herrenknecht mixshield/slurry TBM to bore a twin 1 km-long tunnel from Jordan Road to East Tsim Sha Tsui Station on the Kowloon Southern Link (contract KBD-200), which will connect the West Rail with the East Rail. The owner is Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC). Excavated diameter is 8.05 m and internal diameter is 7 m. Visit www.herrenknecht.comThe tunnels encounter a full range of ground conditions including completely decomposed granite (CDG), mixed face of CDG and granite, full face of granite, potential for encountering two faults and mixed face of CDG, alluvium and marine deposit.The TBM components are being manufactured in Germany and China. Final assembly will take place in Canton. The machine is due for delivery in June. It is about 80 metres long and weighs around 800 tonnes. The supplier of the laser survey equipment for guidance is VMT. Visit www.vmt-gmbh.deSegmental precast concrete lining (6 + 1, universal taper, two types, a 1.5 m-long ring and a 1.2 m-long ring). The segments will be manufactured in China at an existing precast plant using CBE moulds and shipped to site. The segments will be produced by subcontractor Redland Precast Concrete Products. Slurry transport and separation plant by Pigott Shaft Drilling of Preston (UK). Visit www.cbe-tunnels.com, www.redlandprecast.com.hk and www.mudcleaning.comWest Kowloon Station is 336 m long x 28 m wide x 20 m deep below ground and 20 m above ground. Contract KDB-200 also includes a 100 m cut-and-cover tunnel to North (connecting to KDB-300) and a 150 m cut-and-cover tunnel to South (connecting to bored tunnels). Also, approx. 50 m of cut-and-cover tunnel connecting the existing East Rail tunnels with the new tunnels. Click cn/21. Visit www.leightonasia.com/data/pdf/LeightonNewsJan06.pdf and www.kcrc.com/eng/corporate/project/index.asp?page=KSL 16/06.

Expressway 87 km-long with one tunnel for completion 2002. Consultant: Halcrow China. April 1998.