By rosebell
A tunnel boring machine (TBM) operated by PETROJET, with technical assistance and operational support from Webuild Group, has restarted excavation for the final 731m drive towards Al Ahramat station in Egypt’s capital.
The 700-tonne, 100m-long machine is completing its current underground route on the first phase of Cairo Metro Line 4. Its breakthrough at Al Ahramat will mark the completion of this TBM’s tunnelling programme.
TBM relocated and reassembled at El Remaya
The machine reached El Remaya station in August after completing a 781m drive through sands and silts associated with the Nile alluvial system.
The previous section included a challenging approach to the station, where the TBM passed less than 6m from the wall of a 30m-deep excavation.
Before starting its final drive, the machine underwent a relocation operation involving dismantling, transport and reassembly within the El Remaya station construction area. The operation took almost two months and required precise positioning and recommissioning of the heavy equipment.
The TBM has now resumed excavation towards Al Ahramat station.
Six TBMs working on Line 4 Phase 1
The machine is one of six TBMs deployed on the first phase of Cairo Metro Line 4, which extends approximately 19km and includes 17 stations, 16 of them underground.
Four TBMs are operating on the western section between Hadaek Al-Ashgar and Al-Masaha, while two additional machines are working eastwards from Al-Fustat towards El-Malek El-Saleh.
Egypt’s National Authority for Tunnels has stated that the simultaneous operation of six TBMs represents a first for a metro project in the country.
New metro connection for western Cairo and Giza
Line 4 Phase 1 will connect western Cairo and Giza with the existing metro network. The alignment serves key locations, including the Grand Egyptian Museum, Al Ahramat, Giza and El-Malek El-Saleh, before reaching its terminus at Al-Fustat.
The project is intended to improve urban connectivity and expand public transport capacity across the Egyptian capital.
