English

Kosman tunnel got another half a kilometer in length

The most demanding object on the section of three priority sections of highway Bar-Boljare, Kosman tunnel, got penetrated for almost half a kilometer, said head of construction Zhang Wenyuan to Weekend Edition Dnevne Novine daily.

Works on the inlet and outlet tubes of this tunnel are performed continuously in three shifts.

“Works on section Lopate are carried on in according to plan. Currently we are working on tunnels Kosman and Mala trava, and we are starting to prepare for works on tunnel Mrki krš”, Wenyuan said.

According to him, flysch inside tunnel Kosman is making the construction more difficult but aside from that, there are no major delays in the construction.

“On the inlet side of the tunnel, left tube was penetrated for 180m, and the right one for 100m. On the outlet side, both tubes were penetrated in the length of 80m. Left tube of Kosman tunnel has 2.671m in length, and the right one 2.546m. Kosman will be fully drilled through by the end of 2018, and the construction will be finalized in the beginning of 2019”, Wenyuan said.

In this part of priority section, 12 facilities in total will be built, 8 bridges and 4 tunnels. There will also be a loop and five toll booths in this part.

“This part has almost ten kilometers in length. We have employed 225 Chinese and 45 Montenegrin workers so far. Side constructor on this part is Cijevna Commerce”, Wenyuan said.

Construction of tunnel Mala trava has 180 workers employed.

“Construction on tunnel Mala trava is going according to our plans. On the inlet side, left tube was penetrated for 20m, and the right one for 50m. On the outlet side, left tube got 130m in length, and the right one 160m. Total length of the left tube of tunnel Mala trava is 1.884m, and the right one 1.900m. Here we also encountered difficulties with flysch, but we are pleased with what we have achieved. The way things are now, the construction will be finalized within deadlines, in August 2018, and by the end of that year, the tunnel will be fully functional”, Wenyuan explained.

Unlike tunnel Jabučki krš, where a special machine called mole is used, tunnels Kosman and Mala trava prove that mining is the most profitable option.

They feel at home

Local community fully embraced Chinese workers, Wenyuan said.

“When we first arrived, local people brought us food. They were attentive and good hosts. We help them as much as we can. We feel at home here and we are happy that we were received in such a good manner”, Wenyuan said.

In both tunnels, there is a special ventilation system that pumps fresh air for the workers, and helps dissolve smoke and dust from mining.

Chinese company CRBC, the main constructor on the priority section of highway Bar-Boljare, performed works in the amount of 171 million EUR by the end of last year, which constitutes 21% of total value of project and construction.

Construction on the highway official started on May 11th 2015, and will be finalized by May 2019.

First section of the highway will cost 809,6 million EUR. From that amount, 85% will be provided by Exim Bank, through a credit, and 15% will be funded by state of Montenegro.

The credit repayment period is 20 years, with grace period of 6 years, and yearly interest rate of 2%. Expected time of return of funds for section Smokovac – Mateševo is 17 years since its construction, or 13 years since its exploitation, socio-economic analysis of the project stated.

 

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