ALBERTA AND PRAIRIES
The cities of Calgary and Edmonton continue to work on the expansion of the capacity of their storm and sanitary systems with small diameter (< 3m) tunnels anticipated for Nose Creek Valley upgrades in Calgary and continued work on various stages of the West Edmonton Sanitary Sewer (WESS) in Edmonton. A recent 600m-long contract, which is part of relocations required for construction of Calgary’s Southwest Ring Road, has been awarded to Ward & Burke Microtunnelling Ltd. of Mississauga, Ontario, the same contractor who has successfully completed the Bowness Offload Trunk crossings of the Bow River. We expect some of the technical information on these projects to be presented at the upcoming NASTT-NW Trenchless Conference in Calgary, on November 19, 2015. (www.nastt-nw. com/?page_id=102)
In Edmonton, work continues on the CAD 1.8bn (USD 1.35bn) low-floor line to Mill Woods from City Centre, which includes an approximately 400m-long twin tunnel section in the North Saskatchewan River valley section. The three teams competing for the opportunity to submit a bid to design, build, operate, maintain and partially finance the project are TransEd Partners (almost a dozen companies, including Bechtel, EllisDon and Bombardier Transportation Canada), Moving YEG (made up of 10 firms that include ACS Infrastructure Canada, Hochtief PPP Solutions North America, and Stantec) and River City Transit (composed of about eight firms including SNC-Lavalin, Kiewit and Alstom). Final proposals are expected in the fall of 2015 with the successful team selected by the end of 2015. Major construction is expected to begin in 2016, with expected completion in 2020.
The Federal government has recently pledged a contribution of CAD 1.5bn for construction of Calgary’s Green Line LRT, a CAD 4.5bn mega-project which will run from Calgary’s northern outskirts, through downtown and to the South Health Campus in the City’s Southeast. The northern portion is currently in the planning stages, with a number of options currently under consideration for crossing of the Bow River in the downtown section, including tunnelling.
Heinrich K. Heinz, Thurber Engineering Ltd.
BRITISH COLUMBIA
The tunnelling industry remains active in British Columbia with many ongoing and planned projects in the Greater Vancouver area and other regions of the province.
Hydroelectricity is leading the way in terms of the number of tunnels currently underway. Approximately 60km north of Pemberton, Innergex Renewable Energy is constructing the Upper Lillooet and Boulder Creek hydroelectric facilities (HEF). The construction of both facilities is being carried out by CRT-EBC, a joint venture of EBC Inc. and CRT Construction Inc. The Upper Lillooet HEF is an 81.4 MW plant consisting of an approximately 2,500m-long inverted D tunnel shaped 6m wide and 5.5m high: to date, a total of approximately 420m of tunnel has been excavated in difficult ground. The Boulder Creek HEF is a 25.3 MW comprising a 2,900m-long inverted D shaped tunnel 3.6m wide x 4.5m high to be mainly excavated from the downstream portal: in addition, approximately 2km of that tunnel is to be excavated with a 13% uphill grade. So far, 979m of the Boulder Creek tunnel have been excavated.
Innergex Renewable Energy is also constructing the Big Silver HEF, approximately 50km north of Harrison Hot Springs: this 40.6MW project conveys water through an 1,800m-long tunnel that has the same dimensions as the Upper Lillooet HEF tunnel (6m wide x 5.5m high). Excavation of this tunnel was carried out from both portals by CRT-EBC during the 2014- 2015 winter shut down of the Upper Lillooet and Boulder Creek projects and was completed in a four-and-a-half-month period: CRT-EBC used the crews and equipment from the Upper Lillooet and Boulder Creek tunnel projects.
BC Hydro is moving forward with Phase I of the Site C project: included in the works are two diversion tunnels approximately 670m and 762m long with a diameter of 12.2m. The project also comprises some drainage tunnels with access adits under the dam. Four groups have prequalified for the tender phase. Technical and Financial submissions are currently scheduled for September and October respectively.
Another BC Hydro project currently under development is the John Hart Generating Station Replacement Hydro project. Located in Campbell River, on Vancouver Island, this nearly CAD 1bn project was awarded to InPower BC (SNC-Aecon). The project comprises a 2.1km-long power tunnel, underground powerhouse and associated adit tunnels. At the end of July, the 116m-long, 6m x 6m diameter service tunnel is complete and enters the powerhouse cavern on the downstream side. The controlled blasting and drilling has gone across the 93m length of the crown of the powerhouse cavern. There are two adits that feed off the service tunnel, with Adit B now complete and over 260m-long. Work is just starting on Adit C. Excavation of the main access tunnel 6m wide by 9m high is now about 40 per cent complete. Excavation of the power tunnel is also about to commence.
The 2.7km-long tunnel for AltaGas’ 66MW McLymont Creek Hydro project was completed earlier this year by Procon Mining and Tunnelling: cleanup and final consolidation are almost complete. AltaGas will begin commissioning in September and expects to produce power at the end of September. McLymont Creek is located downstream of the Forrest Kerr project which is currently supplying power to BC Hydro’s grid.
The excavation of Metro Vancouver’s 1km-long x 3.1m-diameter Port Mann Water Supply Tunnel 30m below the river bed was completed in June of this year by McNally- Aecon JV. Removal of the CAT TBM was completed in mid-July and the contractor is making preparations to install the 2.1m diameter welded steel water main in the tunnel and shafts. Final completion of the overall project is scheduled to be in fall 2016. (See feature page 23.)
Metro Vancouver has more tunnel projects planned: the Second Narrows Water Supply tunnel, a 1.1km-long by 5.7m diameter tunnel connecting the Vancouver suburbs of North Vancouver and Burnaby below Burrard Inlet is currently in the detailed design phase while construction is planned to commence in 2017. The Annacis Main No. 5 Water Tunnel is a proposed water supply tunnel beneath the Fraser River connecting the Greater Vancouver suburbs of New Westminster and Surrey. Pre-design activities are currently taking place while construction is expected to commence in 2018. Finally, conceptual design for Metro Vancouver’s Coquitlam Intake No. 2 tunnel is slated to begin in 2015.
TransLink’s Evergreen Line Rapid Transit Project includes a 2km-long concrete segment tunnel being excavated with a 10m diameter CAT EPB tunnel boring machine: started in June 2014, tunnel excavation is reportedly approximately 60 per cent complete with a scheduled completion at the end of 2015.
TransLink, Metro Vancouver’s regional transportation authority and the City of Vancouver are both supporting the tunnel option for the Broadway-UBC planned Line. In a recent referendum however, voters rejected a planned sales tax increase to fund transit projects: local government officials are now looking for alternate sources of funding. The project remains on the table.
In the mining sector, preliminary design of several future mine infrastructure projects show tunnels for access and haulage of mined mineral. For example, the conceptual design for Seabridge Gold’s KSM project shows two 23km-long ore conveyance tunnels and numerous drainage tunnels.
Some of the major pipeline projects in British Columbia also have tunnels planned along their alignment: the Kinder Morgan Transmountain Pipeline project is planned to go through a 3.8m-diameter, 2km-long tunnel under Burnaby Mountain. The Northern Gateway project includes two planned tunnels along its alignment: the Clore and Hoult tunnels located approximately 50km east of Kitimat.
TAC’s British Columbia chapter holds talks every month between September and June on a variety of topics. We look forward to seeing you there!
Serge Moalli, EBC Inc.
ONTARIO
Ontario continues to have a strong tunnelling market. There seems to be a substantial amount of work currently underway, plenty of projects currently in the prequalification and tender stage and quite a good outlook for projects on the horizon.
Here is a rundown on some current, near term and future projects in Ontario:
ECLRT – Eglinton Cross Town Light Rail Transit, Toronto
The ECLRT project is broken up into two contracts. The first contract, currently being constructed by the joint venture of Obayashi/Kenaidan/Kenny, has completed their first two tunnel drives between Keele St. and Allen Rd., utilizing two CAT EPB TBMs. The two TBMs were removed, repositioned, commissioned and have resumed mining once again on the balance of the tunnels between Allen Rd. and Laird Dr.
The second contract, currently being constructed by the joint venture of Aecon/Dragados, has started construction of the launch shafts and other works. However, tunnelling utilising the second set of CAT EPB TBMs has not yet started, but is scheduled to commence shortly.
OLRT – Ottawa Light Rail Transit, Ottawa
The OLRT project is 12.5km of LRT line, with a 2.5km tunnel and four underground stations in the downtown core. The P3 contract was awarded to the Rideau Transit Group made up of Ellis Don, SNC Lavalin, and Dragados Canada. Construction is well underway; the tunnel is currently being excavated by SEM and roadheader methods and is scheduled to be completed in 2016.
Hanlan Feedermain Project, Mississauga
Hanlan Feedermain Project was divided into three contracts. Only contracts one and three contain tunnels; where contract two is to be constructed via open-cut. Contract one was awarded to McNally Construction and contract three was awarded to Southland-Technicore JV. Construction on all contracts has commenced, tunnelling on contracts one and three are well underway.
Twinning of the West Trunk, Mississauga
Twinning of the West Trunk Project was divided into two contracts. Contract one was awarded to McNally Construction last year and tunnelling is progressing well; while contract two has recently been awarded to Technicore, with construction to commence shortly.
Mid-Halton Outfall and Zone 1 Interconnect Tunnels, Oakville
Strabag has been awarded the Mid-Halton Outfall tunnel project. The project is underway, shafts have been excavated, and the tunnelling is about to commence. The bored tunnel is approximately 6.3km in length and is expected to be primarily in rock.
C & M McNally Engineering has recently been awarded the Mid-Halton Zone 1 interconnect tunnel contract. Construction on this project is just about to commence, with compounds being prepared and construction of shafts about to begin.
2400mm Sanitary Sewer from 3rd Line to Lower Base Line Road, Oakville
Dibco Underground has almost completed 3,300m of tunnelling on this project, through Queenston shale, utilized an Atlas Copco Rock TBM and a Komatsu Hard Rock Gripper TBM. Construction is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2015.
Bathurst & Teston Rd. Watermain, Richmond Hill
Memme Construction was awarded the project and subcontracted the 685m long tunnel to CRS Tunnelling Inc. The Tunnel will be constructed through mixed ground conditions utilizing a refurbished Lovat EPB TBM and will install a 3m ID prefabricated concrete segmental liner. Tunnelling is to commence in August.
Near term
Britannia East and Derry Green Regional Servicing – Wastewater Pumping Station, Milton, is currently out for tender. The project consists of both open face rock tunnelling and microtunnelling. The project is to be bid by the prequalified GC’s utilising the prequalified trenchless and open cut contractors; and closes in August.
Fairbanks Silverthorn Trunk Storm Sewer system, City of Toronto, prequalification has closed. The outcome of the RFQ is pending. The project consists of 2.2km of 4m diameter EPB tunnelling and also contains a section of microtunnelling.
Ottawa Combined Sewage Storage Tunnel (CSST), City of Ottawa, prequalification has closed. The outcome of the RFQ is pending. The project consists of approximately 6km of 3m diameter rock tunnelling utilizing a TBM that can install a 3m ID prefabricated concrete segments.
Future
There are a slew of projects under design and scheduled to be let for tender in the future, such as: CP Rail Tunnel from Windsor to Detroit; Ontario Power Generation deep geologic repository tunnels for nuclear waste; Sheppard East LRT; Downtown Relief Line; and Coxwell By-pass east river tunnel to name a few. The outlook for Ontario looks promising for the years to come.
Microtunnelling
There continues to be a very active microtunnelling market in Ontario. Many projects are currently being constructed all over the province, such as: West Don in Toronto, Britannia Rd. in Halton, and Nashville Rd in Vaughan by Ward & Burke Microtunnelling. Albion -Vaughan Rd. Trunk Sanitary in Bolton by Earth Boring; and Twinning of Etobicoke Creek project at Pearson Airport by Dibco-CRS Tunnelling JV. Many more microtunnelling projects are scheduled to be tendered this year with plenty of activity that will continue into the next year.
Workshop
TAC Ontario is hosting a two day workshop and awards dinner on October 5th and 6th of this year. The venue will be at Grant Hall, Queens University, Kingston, and the topic of the workshop is "Challenges and Innovations in Tunnelling". Don’t miss this one, as the workshop will be packed with well-known speakers and interesting topics. Please visit the TAC website (www.tunnelcanada.ca) for more information about the workshop and information on how to register. Also, don’t forget to visit the TAC website for information about our monthly presentations and site visits, scheduled on the last Thursday of every month. They are a great networking opportunity … see you there!
Walter Trisi, CRS Tunnelling Inc.
QUÉBEC Romaine-1 Hydro-electrical project (270 MW)
All underground and surface excavations, as well as dam and dyke back filling are completed. The penstock steel liner was installed and concreted in the spring. Commissioning is planned for this fall.
Romaine-2 Hydro-electrical project (640 MW)
The project was completed and commissioned last winter.
Romaine-3 Hydro-electrical complex (395 MW)
Pressure tunnel excavation (1,675m long, 18m X 12m) was completed and powerhouse and spillway concreting is ongoing. Steel penstock should begin shortly. The concreting of the intake is set to begin in the summer. At the dam (95m high) and the dyke (33m high), the foundations treatment is ongoing and 20 per cent of the back fill was placed.
City of Montreal
Hard rock TBM Tunnel for a water main in Montreal
The 3m diameter open Robbins TBM tunnel has advanced passed 2,000m, which is more than 50 per cent of the total length (3,980m long). The machine as crossed some weak zones which have slowed down the advanced rate locally.
Foraction is the sub-contractor of Les Entreprises Michaudville inc. the general contractor with an awarded contract of CAD 73M. The project has begun in May with the shaft excavation and is schedule to last a total of around 28 months from the beginning of the shaft excavation to the final pipe installation and valve chamber construction.
Axor Group
Hydro-Canyon Project
This is a small hydro-electrical project in construction on the Ste-Anne River in the city of Quebec. The project includes an intake, a ± 440m-long pressure tunnel, a penstock and a powerhouse. The project also involves the construction of a large soil nail wall for the construction of the access road to the powerhouse (up to 18m high). The drill and blast tunnel is D shaped with 4.5m large by 4.5m high, and the static pressure will be around 60m of water head. The tunnel excavation is ongoing and should be completed in the fall. Plant commissioning is planned for fall 2016.
Mont-Royal Tunnel
The Mount-Royal tunnel is a twin track train tunnel that passes underneath the Mount-Royal in Montreal. The tunnel is 5.57km-long and has a D shape of 8.7m wide by 4.5m high. The tunnel was constructed between 1912 and 1916 and is now owned by the AMT, which is the transport agency of Montreal area.
The ‘train de l’Est’ new train line is using the tunnel with new bimodal locomotives that runs on both diesel and electricity. The transit of diesel fuel in the tunnel presents a serious safety issue and studies have been carried out to determine the required work to be carried to upgrade to tunnel to modern safety standards.
The project is estimated at around CAD 90M and construction should be completed by the end of 2017. Detailed design contract was recently awarded to Stantec.