Construction material for the ventilation system.

28 April 2011

ABB Lands Gotthard Base Tunnel Contract

Baden Switzerland - Baden-based ABB said Thursday it has won an order worth about US$21 million from AlpTransit Gotthard AG (ATG) to provide a ventilation system for the Gotthard Base Tunnel in Switzerland, which will carry trains beneath the Alps. The tunnel is the world's largest railway tunnel project, with a route length of 57 kilometers (35 miles).
 
AlpTransit Gotthard is wholly owned subsidiary of Swiss Federal Railways, with headquarters in Lucerne.
 
ABB is part of a consortium, also including Germany's TLT Turbo GmbH, working on the tunnel project, responsible for developing, producing, and installing what will be the largest tunnel ventilation system ever built, providing fresh air for the entire project's total network of tunnels, shafts, and passages equals 152 kilometers, or 94 miles.
 
The project is scheduled for completion in 2017. Once open, the tunnel will handle an estimated 200 to 250 trains per day.