A consortium led by Bechtel has begun tunneling on Line 1 of the Riyadh Metro in Saudi Arabia, marking an important milestone in the construction of this landmark project. Riyadh Metro is set to be the country’s first underground rail system and one of the largest in the world.
The consortium, which includes Saudi company, Almabani General Contractors, Middle East-based Consolidated Contractors Company, and Germany’s Siemens AG, is responsible for the USD10 billion contract for the design, construction, train cars, signaling, electrification and integration of Lines 1 and 2, two of the most challenging lines on the Riyadh Metro project. The work includes 39 stations, two of which are key interchange stations: Olaya Station, situated in the center of Riyadh at the intersection of Lines 1 and 2, and King Abdullah Financial District Station, located slightly to the north on Line 1.
The first tunnel boring machine, Mneefah, named after the horse of Saudi Arabia’s founder King, will steadily ramp up to its planned average tunneling rate of about 325 feet (100 meters) per week and is expected to complete its journey by mid-2016. In total, seven tunnel boring machines will be deployed by the Bechtel-led team to dig and construct more than 21 miles (more than 35 kilometers) of tunnels beneath the capital city.
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