The construction contract for the EUR133 million Lai Chi Kok Transfer Scheme, advertised at tunnelbuilder.com earlier this year, has been awarded to Leighton Asia. The project includes two 4.9 m-diameter storm water drainage tunnels with total length of 3.7 km between West Kowloon reclamation and Lai Chi Kok and Sham Shui Po districts, six intake shafts, a stilling basin, an outfall adit into Victoria Harbour, and 270 m of 3 m-diameter connection adits. Work starts immediately for completion in 2012. More from Quinnie Lee, tel +852 2823 1427, e-mail quinnie.lee@leightonasia.com 47/08..

Contract valued EUR414,000 awarded by Norwegian Railway Infrastructure Administration to Norconsult AS of Sandvika to provide technical and detailed plans of tunnels for the joint project E6 road and Dovrebanen, lot Minnesund-Kleverud, which includes one twin-tube 0.6 km-long road tunnel and 3.1 km of single railway tunnel over a 17 km-long alignment in Eidsvoll and Stange municipalities. ..

Contract for telecommunications installations for 6.5 km section of new double railway track in Baerum municipality for Lysaker-Sandvika, of which 5.5 km in tunnel, awarded by Jernbaneverket to T Connect AS of Manglerud, Oslo. http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=292852-2008 More from Olaf Bjerknes, tel +47 9943 4144, e-mail olbj@jbv.no 46/08. ..

Bemel Norge AS of Majorstuen, Oslo has been awarded the contract to supply ventilation fans to the 5.37 km-long Atlantic Ocean tunnel between Kristiansund and Bremnes on National Road 64 in the value EUR555,000...

Pre-feasibility study being undertaken by ILF Consulting Engineers for construction of single track railway line along the Karakorum highway between the end of the existing railway network in the south at Havelian and the border between Pakistan and China near the famous Khunjrab Pass in the north.

Prequalification underway by MTR for tender reference no 703 for West Island Line SHW to SYP tunnels value EUR30 million with a view to selective invitations to tender being issued in 4Q/2008 for contract award in 3Q/2009. Expressions of interest to Malcolm O’Neill, tel 3921 3383, e-mail moneill@mtr.com.hk Visit www.mtr.com.hk/eng/tenders/new_projects.html 45/08.

Prior information notice for construction works, value EUR24.86 million, for a undergroung cut-and-cover tunnel from Pabellon Moises Ruiz to Plaza de Barcelona, 1,1 km, with 0.8 m-thick base, 1.0 m-thick walls and 1.0 m-thick roof, on Carretera de Ronda, in Almeria. The works will include intermodal station.

ANAS, the Italian national road administration, the Aosta valley autonomous region and SITRASB, the operator of the Grand Saint-Bernard tunnel, signed on 22nd April, 2008 an annex to the agreement signed in 1998 related to the financing of the construction of a bypass road to the SS 27, from Etroubles to the motorway leading to the Grand Saint-Bernard tunnel.

ANAS, the Italian national road administration, approved on 23rd April, 2008 the EUR1.66 million final design of the Mercatello sul Metauro-San Stefano di Gaifa section on the E78 expressway in Marche region. The 33 km section, whereof 12.5 km of tunnel and 5.5 km of viaduct, will complete the E78 in Marche. The section crosses the Metauro river valley in Sant’ Angelo in Vado, Urbania and Fermignano municipalities. The project will be divided into six lots. The E78 will connect, from west to east, Grosseto in Tuscany to Fano in Marche, briefly crossing northern Umbria. It is a high capacity road corridor aimed at connecting the Thyrrenian and Adriatic coasts in central Italy. Visit www.provincia.ps.it/lavoripubblici/2_progettaz_dl/Grosseto-Fano/home%20E78%20Grosseto-Fano.htm 18-19/08.

Open invitation to tender, deadline 5th June, 2008 for detailed design of the dualling of the San Silvestre water tunnel in Huelva province. The existing tunnel is 7,594 m long and features a 4.70 sq m horse shoe-shaped cross-section. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=102921-2008, OJ S 76, or contact Agencia Andaluza del Agua, Seville, fax +34 955625293. E-mail juan.jimenez.garcia@juntadeandalucia.es 18-19/08.

Open invitation to tender, deadline 9th June, 2008 for detailed design of the first phase of the extension of tram line 1 in Alicante to El Altet airport. The 11.5 km extension from the intermodal station to the airport will run underground on two kilometres in the urban area, starting from the intermodal station beneath Ausó and Monzó streets and Avenida de Orihuela to emerge to the daylight in Babel. This first phase includes three stations (Gran Vía, Avenida de Orihuela and Babel, the first two being underground stations). The line will reach the airport in 2011. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=107236-2008, OJ S 79, or contact Generalitat Valenciana, Valencia, tel. +34 963866425. 18-19/08.

Open invitation to tender, deadline 9th June, 2008 for design for stations Zona Universitaria, Campus Norte, Manuel Girona and ventilation shafts, as part of the revised section 3 Zona Universitaria-Sagrera Meridiana of Line 9 of the Barcelona metro. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=104396-2008, OJ S 77, or contact GISA, Barcelona, fax +34 934444488. E-mail correu@gisa.es 18-19/08.

Open invitation to tender, deadline 17th June, 2008 for work management during installation of the safety systems on the Cerceda-Meirama-Bregua section on the Atlantic coast high speed line. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=110301-2008, OJ S 81, or contact Ministry of development, Madrid, fax +34 915979342 or 915978470. E-mail vrpascual@fomento.es or cpublic@fomento.es 18-19/08.

Open invitation to tender, deadline 12th June, 2008 for execution of works to install the safety systems on the Cerceda-Meirama-Bregua section. The 8.1 km Cerceda-Meirama section includes two tunnels (1,735 m and 180 m) and the 5 km Meirama-Bregua section includes a 3,469 m tunnel. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=105360-2008, OJ S 78, or contact Ministry of development, Madrid, fax +34 915979342 or 915978470. E-mail vrpascual@fomento.es or cpublic@fomento.es 18-19/08.

Open invitation to tender, deadline 3rd June, 2008 for support to the construction management and follow-up of safety measures during construction of the tunnels on the Sants-La Roca del Valles and Riudellots-Figueras sections. These

Open invitation to tender, deadline 16th June, 2008 for construction of the new Calheta hydropower plant, including an approx. 2 km-long 50 sq m water tunnel. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=104688-2008, OJ S 77, or contact Empresa de Electricidade da Madeira, Funchal, fax +351 291233324. E-mail eem@eem.pt 18-19/08.

Negotiated invitation to tender, deadline 26th May, 2008 for soil investigations for the Midgardsormen project. Click no/97. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=108946-2008, OJ S 80, or contact Oslo Kommune, Oslo, fax +47 23437241. E-mail erik.bjoranesset@vav.oslo.kommune.no 18-19/08.

ANAS, the Italian national road administration, has declared in the public interest on 23rd April, 2008 a proposal submitted by a joint venture formed by Impregilo (leader, with a 47% share), Astaldi (24%), Pizzarotti (18%) and Itinera (11%) as concessionaire of the project finance initiative for the construction and management of the road link between the Port of Ancona and motorway A14 and the Adriatica national road SS 16. The project value amounts to approx. EUR580 million.

ANAS, the Italian national road administration, has declared in the public interest on 23rd April, 2008 the offer of Gemmo, Uniland, Consorzio Ravennate delle Cooperative di Produzione e Lavoro and Sintel Engineering to upgrade, bring to standards and manage the equipment in the tunnels operated in Lombardy. The group of companies will take advantage of a pre-emption right over other bidders. Visit www.gemmo.com, www.consrav.net and www.sintelitalia.com 18-19/08.

ANAS, the Italian road administration, has declared in the public interest on 23rd April, 2008 a proposal submitted by Silec, Egis Projects, Maltauro Consorzio Stabile and Tecnis for the design, construction and operation of a toll road link from the connection of road SS 514 Chiaramente with road SS 115 to the connection of road SS 194 Ragusana with road SS 114. The next stage is the approval of the project by the CIPE (interministerial committee for economic planning) and then tenders will be invited to choose a concessionaire but the group of companies will have a preemption right. The south carriageway Ragusa-Catania includes 13 bored tunnels for a total length of 5,983 metres, the longest of which is 1,045 metres in length, and four cut-and-cover tunnels totalling 1,822 metres. The north carriageway Catania-Ragusa includes also 13 bored tunnels for a total length of 6,247 metres, the longest of which is 1,012 metres in length, and five cut-and-cover tunnels totalling 1,361 metres. Visit www.silec.it, www.egis-projects.com, www.gruppomaltauro.it and www.tecnis.it 18-19/08.

Negotiated invitation to tender, deadline 23rd May, 2008 for geotechnical investigation for the interconnector project, a 5.2 km-long, twin bore tunnel for electrified heavy rail in Dublin city centre linking the Belfast line to the Cork line. It is currently anticipated that there will be five underground stations at Docklands, Pearse Street, Saint Stephen’s Green, Christchurch and Heuston. Visit http://ted.europa.eu/udl?request=Seek-Deliver&language=en&docid=107611-2008, OJ S 79, or contact Irish Rail, Dublin, fax +353 18880212. E-mail tommy.conlon@irishrail.ie 18-19/08.

A total of 56 national and foreign companies have expressed interest in the conceptual design for Bogota’s mass transit metro network and the technical, legal and financial scope of the first metro line. Among these, 35 are joint ventures from various countries. The second phase of the process is the evaluation of the information sent by the candidates to then establish a shortlist in accordance with the requirements of the World Bank. Then, the prequalified candidates will be invited to prepare and submit their bids. To know the companies who expressed interest