Excavation is getting underway on the Terrassa rail project in Spain with a 6.9m diameter EPBM, the first of two Lovat shields that will be used on the twin tube drives at the edge of Barcelona.
The first shield was delivered to the JV of FCC Construccion, Copsia and Obrascon Huarte Lain in late November last
year, and assembly commencement by mid-December. Lovat received the first order for a shield just
after mid-2007 and later in the year received the second call, for an identical EPBM.
Geology along the alignment comprises mainly sedimentary deposits including argillaceous, granular and cemented materials, and isolated layers of conglomerate and cemented deposits. The complete alignment is below groundwater with the head varying from 5m-24m over the tunnel invert.
The mixed face shields will drive 3.7km long twin tunnels, and an average advance rate of 10m/day is envisaged per machine. Each machine can produce 9,000kNm of torque and thrust is 65,000kN.
Launch of the first machine had been previously earmarked for around October last year. Lovat is also supplying technical assistance and parts for the RME270SE TBMs (T&TI, Jan 08, p5).
Ferrocarrils de la Generalitat de Catalunya (FGC), the rail company of the autonomous Government of Catalonia is developing the project which is an inland extension of the FGC network in Barcelona.
