ECUADOR: Quito Mayor Mauricio Rodas has visited Herrenknecht’s Schwanau plant in southern Germany to inspect the two tunnel boring machines that the company is supplying to work on the Quito metro. He was joined by officials from the Quito Metro and the Acciona-Odebrecht joint venture that is building the line.
The 9·36 m diameter earth pressure balance TBMs are due to arrive in Ecuador in spring 2017. Each has a drive power 2 750 kW and nominal torque of 21 035 kNm.
The 22 km north-south route between El Labrador and Quitumbe will have two tunnels 8·2 km and 9·1 km long at a depth of 20 to 25 m. Opening of the line to passengers is due in 2019.
