The tunnel will run under a section of water known as The Narrows to connect the mainland near Gladstone to the Santos GLNG LNG Plant on Curtis Island. The 3.4m internal diameter, segmentally lined tunnel will serve as the conduit for the Santos GLNG gas transmission line.
Thiess will construct the tunnel using a TBM and the concrete segments used to line the tunnel will be cast onsite. Mobilisation is expected to commence onsite this month preparing for tunnelling activities to commence later in the year.
Bruce Munro, managing director of Thiess, said the contract with Saipem is a strong endorsement of the company’s market-leading tunnelling expertise: "Thiess’ versatile tunnelling capability is already being deployed in the LNG sector in Western Australia and we’re excited to now bring our tunnelling expertise to Queensland’s LNG industry. LNG is the clean energy of tomorrow and this contract dovetails with our objective to become an integral part of the industry’s development."
