亚洲天堂

The tunnel boring machine (TBM) of the Rio Tinto鈥檚 Kemano T2 Project broke through to complete the excavation process back in October of 2021, setting up the next phase in the project for the new year.

The TBM cut 7.6 kilometres through rock over 30 months, completing the route for a 16-kilometre tunnel that was started in the early 1990s. The reason for the project is to create a second tunnel running adjacent to the of the existing tunnel bringing water from the Nechako Reservoir to the Kemano Powerhouse, which powers Rio Tinto鈥檚 BC Works smelter in Kitimat.

Now, that the TBM is finished its excavation, it鈥檚 time for a complicated extraction process.

鈥淭he TBM is 190-metre long and is actually greater in diameter than the finished tunnel it is creating. In most cases, the TBM is removed via the opening that the machine mines itself into, but in this case, tunnel excavation ended at the previously mined intake structure some 100ft below the surface of the water,鈥� said Rio Tinto Kemano T2 Project Manager Alex Jones.

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鈥淭he TBM is being removed via the Horetzky landing access [located at about the halfway point of the tunnel], which means the machine, which weighs 1,300 tons, is being disassembled and transported via the tunnel鈥檚 rail system. During this operation, other completion activities are undertaken in parallel,鈥� he continued.

According to Jones The next steps for the project is to fill the second tunnel with water.

鈥淭he plan is to commence filling the tunnel early in the second half of 2022. That process takes considerable effort and monitoring by the team. Following on from that process, a number of activities remain on the surface. Demobilizing the equipment and the temporary infrastructure along with rehabilitation will be our next priority,鈥� Jones told Lakes District 亚洲天堂.

The company said in 2021 that the completion of the Kemano T2 project would happen by the second half of 2022. 鈥淲e remain on track to meet that schedule,鈥� Jones said.

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