Date | 20 February 2020 |
Location | GIBB, Woodmead North Office Park |
Resources | Announcement SANCOT Breakfast and Talk 05022020.pdf |
Until recently, all rail tunnels in Norway were excavated using drill & blast technology. The Follo Line project is a new 22 kilometers long double track rail line between Oslo Central Station and Ski. Four double shield hard rock TBMs with an excavation diameter of 9.96 meters excavated a total of about 36 kilometers of predominantly Precambrian gneisses with banding and lenses of amphibolite and pegmatite. The tunneling concept is based on using four TBMs, two of each operating in opposite directions from two access tunnels that are located near the midpoint of the alignment in a remote, rural location. The tunnel will be Norway’s longest and largest rail tunnel. The presentation highlights the project challenges in particular the abrasive and strong rock mass, the large diameter in combination with the possible risk of high water pressures (12 bar) that required a well-adapted TBM concept.
Gugu Charlie, Conference Co-ordinator
SAIMM Tel: (011) 834-1273/7
E-mail: gugu@saimm.co.za