|
contents | business | |||||||||
| FCC's Austrian unit to build the second Pfänder tunnel Alpine Bau GmbH, the Austrian unit of Spain's Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas SA (FCC), has won the bidding process to construct the second Pfänder tunnel, on highway A-14 in the Rhine valley, Austria. The contract is worth 123 million euro. The present Pfänder tunnel, from Rheintal to Walgau, is the most heavily transited tunnel in Austria. Because of major traffic jams, it has been decided to build a second tunnel on the same highway. FCC, whose bid was the most highly rated, landed the contract in competition against five other bidders. The specifications allowed for two different tunnelling systems: conventional, using explosives, and mechanical. Alpine's offer is based on the tunnel boring system. Alpine will bore the 6.5-km-long tunnel using a TBM. It will be the first highway tunnel to be built in Austria using this method, which has been used successfully in countries such as Spain and Switzerland. Construction will begin in October of this year and is scheduled to finish in summer 2012. Once the new tunnel is completed, the current tunnel will be refurbished and, in summer 2013, the Pfänder tunnel will be opened in both directions. write your comments about the article :: © 2007 Construction News :: home page |