Pöyry has been awarded a EUR7 million engineering services contract by Sepasad Engineering Co. to undertake engineering services during the implementation of the 450 MW Rudbar-e-Lorestan hydropower project. Previously, Pöyry carried out technical studies for the project. The Rudbar-e-Lorestan dam and hydropower project will consist of a 180 m-high roller compacted concrete dam to create a reservoir with an estimated gross capacity of 228 million cubic metres. Water from the reservoir will be diverted through a 3 km-long headrace tunnel into the adjacent valley and hence in twin surface steel penstocks down to the surface power house on the bank of the Alkan river. The Rudbar-e-Lorestan hydro project is to be constructed in the upper reaches of the Dez catchment in the Zagros Mountains. Visit www.poyry.com 26/07.

Contractor Alamoot to build 7 km twin-tube metro tunnel for client Tabriz Urban Railway Organization (TURO). Excavated diameter is 6.8 m and inner diameter is 6 m. Two NFM Technologies EPB TBMs will be used. Lining with prefabricated concrete rings, with five 1.4 m-wide segments and key per ring. The line also includes one 80 m-long station every 800 metres. Click here. Visit www.nfm-technologies.com and www.alamoot-co.com 03/06.According to conducted feasibility studies, three routes have been selected with a total length of 44 km and 60 stations for the metro in Tabriz. Priority has been given to Line 1 with a total length of 18 km and 28 stations. This route starts from EI Gloi (southeast part of the city), passes through Bahman 29 Boulevard, Emam Khomeini Avenue (main street of the city), Khayyam Avenue and ends up in Lale district. The first part of this line is under construction and the second part is being designed. At both ends of the line, main terminals and depots have been designed for wagon maintenance and repair.Construction of Line 1 is divided in several phases. Phase one starts at EI Gloi terminal and ends at Rah-no-maee. This section is a shallow tunnel and is under construction by cut-and-cover method.Phase two starts at Rah-no-maee and ends at Tabriz University Round Square. This section comprises a pre-stressed elevated bridge starting from Shahriyar hotel and passing over Bahman 29 Boulevard and the entrance of Vali-Asr Street and then gradually reaches ground level in front of Bahman 29 hospital where station number six and the Tabriz Urban Railway Organization (TURO) central control room and head office building will be located. The rest of line will be a shallow tunnel up to Tabriz University Round Square.Phase three starts at Tabriz University Round Square and ends at Khayyam Avenue. This section will be constructed as a deep tunnel for a total length of eight kilometres due to existing city life, narrow avenues and tall buildings along the avenues. Excavation will be done by an EPB shield machine supplied by NFM Technologies. The tunnels will be twin tubes of 6.88 m diameter.Phase four starts at Khayyam Avenue and ends at Lale terminal. This section is being designed and alternatives are elevated bridge and shallow tunnel. Click here. Visit www.tabrizmetro.org 06/06.

SELI and local subcontractors will build the Sulekan pressure water tunnel, a 56 km-long 4.08 m-diameter tunnel, for the Rafsanjan Development Organization (RDO). The tunnel, between Sulekan Dam to Anar and Rafsanjan, will cross the Sannandaj-Sirjan-Zagros portion of the Zagros mountains. Geology is sedimentary rock, sandstone, marls and limestone. SELI will use two of its own double-shield TBMs. The tunnel will be lined with four hexagonal concrete segments, fastened with pins. Mucking-out with loco and muck cars. Tunnelling to start in July 2005. Cost: EUR134 million. Visit www.selitunnel.com 38/04.

  An international JV formed by Jaeger Bau, Oestu Stettin, SELI, Arvin Engineering and Wirth won a contract to build the Kerman long-term water supply project. The project is designed to supply water to the city of Kerman in southeast Iran, by utilizing the water of the Jazmourian watershed. A 63.5 km north-south running tunnel will be built, excavation diameter of 4.04 m. Two Wirth double-shield TBMs will be used. The northern portal is located approximately 45 km SSW of Kerman while the southern portal is approximately 7 km southeast of Rabor. The maximum overburden of the tunnel is 1,160 m. The geological formations are mainly of volcanic origin, with lesser intrusive rocks. Two ventilation shafts are foreseen. The water transfer tunnel will be excavated from each side of the Kuh-e-Lalehzar mountains, with two drives of approximately 32 km each. The tunnel will partly be lined with prefabricated concrete segments. Logistics will be the project's challenge to build the two tunnel sections in a mountainous hinterland and into the city. The project's engineers are Arvin Engineering of Iran. The client is the Islamic Republic of Iran's Kerman Regional Water Authority. The contract amounts to EUR134.6 million and includes the financing, planning and execution. Financing by Bank Austria Creditanstalt and Oesterreichische Kontrollbank. Construction time: 60 months. Although Kerman is close to Bam, a historical city recently destroyed by an earthquake, the tunnel is not threatened by a seismic zone. Visit www.wirth-europe.com, www.jaegerbau.com, www.oestu-stettin.at, www.selitunnel.com and www.iranarvin.com 08/04.

Intergovernmental agreement signed between Iran and Armenia on 26th December, 2001 for the construction of the 3 km Kajiran tunnel between both countries under the Megrin Pass at a height of 2,070 metres. The project has been worked out by Yerevan-based Armgiprotrans. Iran to finance 85% of the $42 million cost. Visit www.spyur.am/giprotrans.htm 02/02.

  Preliminary design of the priority lines completed in 1998. Total length of LRT network 123 km, 18 km underground and 17 km elevated. 68 stations planned, 23 of which are underground and 11 elevated. Priority is 12.5 km-long North-South line from Kaveh to Soffeh passing under the Zayandeh Rud river at city centre, which is in tunnel for most of its length. Both cut & cover and boring under consideration. Internal diameters of bored tunnel 8.0 m and 5.8 m respectively for twin track and single track. More from euro@isfahan.org.ir 17/01. Pre-feasibility studies completed for 4.7 km tunnel to be excavated by 9 m-diameter EPB in soft ground comprising clay and saturated sand and gravel layers. Proposals invited for acquisition of used TBM or for JV with external TBM contractor. Contact Esfahan LRT Project Management, khashayar@parsiannet.com 40/01.The 12.5 km north-south line A from Kaveh to Soffeh includes 15 stations. The project requires 5.7 m-high, 8 m-wide double-track cut-and-cover tunnels, two 5 km single-track bored tunnels and 14 m-wide 1,500 sq m stations. Phase one from Kaveh to Imam Hossein (4.7 km) will be finished in 2005 and phase two from Imam Hossein to Soffeh (7.8 km) is scheduled for completion in 2007. The Kaveh depot-Shohada section (3 km as part of phase 1) is under construction since June 2001 using the cut-and-cover method. A second section from Shohada to Azadi (end of phase 1 plus part of phase 2), 6 m inner diameter, is under preliminary design, for construction with a 6.7 m EPB shield ordered to Herrenknecht due to be delivered in September 2003 for tunnelling start one month later. The third section from Azadi to Soffeh will also be built in cut-and-cover. Financing by the government of Iran (50%) and the city of Esfahan (50%). More from Mr. Khashayar Bagherinia, Technical Engineering Deputy of Esfahan Metro, e-mail kh_bagherinia@yahoo.com. Visit www.esfahanmetro.org 37/02.Two revamped Herrenknecht EPB shields, OD 6,890 mm and ID 6 m, to arrive in Esfahan in December 2003 for the first machine and in January or February 2004 for the second to drive from April or May 2004 the 2 x 5 km Shohada-Azadi section as part of the 12.5 km north-south line. It is a double-tube single-track tunnel that will cross the Zayandeh Rud river. Logistics equipment to be supplied by Maschinen- und Stahlbau Dresden (MSD) and segment moulds by CBE of France. Contractor is Iranian company Alamot. Cost around $33 million. Visit www.herrenknecht.com, www.msd-dresden.de and www.cbe-tunnels.comIranian contractor Daghigh is building since June 2001 a 3 km-long, 5.7 m-high, 8 m-wide double-track single-tube tunnel box between Kaveh depot and Shohada as part of phase 1. Completion is expected in December 2003. Third section from Azadi to Soffeh is a horse shoe-shaped tunnel, also built by Alamot, using three Paurat roadheaders. Shaft construction started in May 2003 and construction will be finished in May 2005. Visit www.wirth-europe.de/roadheaders/paurat.htm. More from Mr. Khashayar Bagherinia, Technical Engineer and Deputy of Esfahan Metro, e-mail kh_bagherinia@yahoo.com. Visit www.esfahanmetro.org 44/03.

Nurinco to provide $100 million for 25 km-long underground link between Mahrshahr and Hashtgerd on which work will commence immediately and take four years. Visit www.irna.ir 12/01.25 km-long rail connection between Hashtgerd and Karaj interchange with Tehran metro line 5 in design for construction within 4 years, funded by $100m Chinese investment. Visit www.irna.ir 41/01.

Invitation to tender for approximate 5 m-diameter hardrock TBM exploratory tunnels 5 km-long at Talon and 6.3 km-long at Alborz. Partnering with Iranian company necessary. Contact Mohammadi Behrooz sazh-sazan@infopars.net 04/01.

Monenco Iran signed a contract for Consultancy & Supervision Services for Construction of the Tehran- Shomal Freeway (Mechanical and Electrical works). The client is Tehran-Shomal Freeway company.

Tehran-Shomal Freeway is in Northern part of Iran, connecting Tehran to cities of western Mazandaran province. Currently section 4 is in service and section 1, 2 & 3 are under Construction. Section 1 starts from Azadegan Expressway and the Hemmat Expressway interchange in Northwestern part of Tehran city to Doab, Shahrestanak, Alborz Province. This section is 32 km long length, with 28 tunnels having an overall length of 28.4 km on both sides. The longest tunnel is Talun Tunnel which is approximately  4870 m long. The Tehran-Shomal Freeway Project Part 1 deals with performing all operations in the areas of electrical and mechanical, instrumentation, telecommunications, safety, utilities (except Civil Works), pre-commissioning and commissioning in North Tehran highway. For further information please visit http://monenco.com/Default.aspx?tabid=96&articleType=ArticleView&articleId=779. 20/17.

New extension westwards from Africa Square with three-lane, twin parallel tubes of lengths 720 m and 160 m at depths of 4 m to 35 m. Perlite Construction Company started work April, 1997. Consultant KTC, fax +98 21 888 5644. September 1997.

Construction of 98.4 km four-line metro, two east-west lines and two north-south, resuscitated. Lines 1, 2 and 4 are under construction. 9.2 km section of western end of 20.4 km-long Line 2 opening in two stages. First stage with four stations to Imam Khomeini Square is opening September, 1999 and second stage in February, 2000. First section of 34.3 km-long Line 1 will open August, 2000 between interchange with Line 2 at Imam Khomeini Square and Ali Abad. Completion of Line 1, of which 14.9 km is underground, is scheduled for August, 2004. Sept 1999.   President Mohammad Khatami on 21st February, 2000 inaugurated Tehran's first underground line. Awarded to French companies using Zokor TBMs before the Islamic revolution of 1979, the metro has instead been built by Iranian companies with Chinese technical help. The 9.4 km-long line, the first in the Gulf, was built over a period of 13 years at a cost of about $383 million and 40 workers lives. Several years ago, a main street in downtown Tehran opened to swallow cars and people when the one of the tunnels caved in. The line, which has nine stations, connects central Tehran with the western suburb of Sadeqieh and merges with a regular railway service to Karaj, 30 km west of Tehran. The metro capacity is 40,000 pax/h and it will commence limited operations on 21st March. An extension and three more lines totalling 100 km are planned. More information on the TBMs from thesegmentman@aol.com March 2000.Construction of $500 million extension of Tehran's underground system will begin in 2002 for opening in 2010. China has agreed a $100 million loan to extend a line to the Ghazvin region, west of Tehran, and another $29 million to complete a line in the western suburbs. Chinese contractors Noringo expect to subcontract 50% of the work to local firms. July 2000.  Inauguration of Subway No 1, from Tairish square in northern Tehran to the southern parts of the capital. Line will eventually extend to Imam Khomeini airport, under construction some 30 km south of the capital. Tehran currently spends $800 million/year on metro construction. Visit www.avand.net and www.iraniantrade.org 37/01.Line 7 of the Tehran metro is divided in two lots of an approximate total length of 26 km. The bored diameter is 9.14 m whereas the outer and inner diameters are respectively 8.85 and 8.15 m. Geology consists of alluvium from coarse grain to fine grain and maybe bedrock. The owner of the project is Tehran Urban and Suburban Railway Company (TUSRC). Sepasad is the general contractor and subcontracted the construction to SELI for one section and Hara Institute for the second section.SELI will excavate the north-south lot (14 km) using one refurbished, upsized dual mode EPB TBM made by SELI using some minor components of a Lovat TBM used for the Torino metro (mainly cylinders and back-up). Lining rings will be placed as per a 6+1 segment configuration with 35 cm-thick 1.5 m-long bolted universal segments and bi-component grout pumped to the extrados. The maker of the segments moulds has not been selected yet. Same of Milan has been chosen as supplier of the segments moulds. Tunnelling excavation is scheduled to commence in April 2009 and will last three years. Hara Institute is the subcontractor of the west-east lot (12 km). SELI will supply the TBM and back-up equipment for this lot and will be responsible for the TBM assembly and excavation of the first 300 metres. Visit www.tehranmetro.com, www.sepasad.com/indexEN.asp and www.selitunnel.com 24/08.