By rosebell
The winners of the 2026 ITA Tunnelling Awards have been announced, recognising outstanding projects, technical developments, equipment innovations and individual contributions to the tunnelling and underground space industry.
The recipients were revealed at a ceremony in Lisbon, held alongside the CPT 20th Anniversary Conference. This year’s awards recognise achievements across major infrastructure projects, underground construction, rehabilitation, technological innovation and professional development.
The winners and runners-up in each category are as follows.
Major Project of the Year – over €500m
- Gold: GTX-A Metropolitan Express Railway Deep Tunnel Project between Unjeong and Samsung Station – South Korea
- Silver: Beijing East Sixth Ring Road Tunnel – China
- Bronze: HS2 MWCC C1 Chiltern Tunnels and Shafts – United Kingdom
Project of the Year – €100m to €500m
- Gold: Relocation of Sha Tin Sewage Treatment Works to Caverns – Main Caverns Construction – Hong Kong, China
- Silver: Inter-Terminal Bored Tunnels (ITBT), Changi Airport – Singapore
- Bronze: Monsanto-Santa Apolónia Tunnel – Lisbon Drainage Master Plan – Portugal
Project of the Year – up to €100m
- Gold: Ollachea Tunnel – Peru
- Silver: Novaliches–Balara Aqueduct 4 (NBAQ4) – Philippines
- Bronze: Lisbon Metro Circular Line Extension, Lot 2 (Santos–Cais do Sodré) – Portugal
Rehabilitation, Upgrading and Repurposing Projects
- Gold: Howard Street Tunnel – United States
- Silver: Beverentunnel Renovation – Belgium
- Bronze: Total Renovation of the Kennedy Railway Tunnel in Antwerp – Belgium
Technical Innovation of the Year
- Gold: Automated Primary Supports for Tunnelling Under Tectonic Stresses and Severe Squeezing – Italy
- Silver: A World-First TBM-Excavated Spiral Ramp in Hard Granite for Radioactive Waste Disposal – China
- Bronze: Complete Equipment and Construction Technology for Vertical Excavation of Ultra-Large-Diameter Prefabricated Shafts – China
Product / Equipment Innovation of the Year
- Gold: TBM Integrated Sensing Equipment – China
- Silver: Use of Precast Lining and Automated Lining Erector Machine in Mined Tunnels – Australia
- Bronze: The Cube System – an Ultra-Low-Headroom Diaphragm Wall Machine – Belgium
Elevated Thinking: Underground – Shaping the Future
- Gold: Elevating Energy Viability: Sustainable LPG Storage in Engineered Rock Caverns – India
- Silver: HIPOGEO Santiago Bernabéu Stadium – Spain
- Bronze: Planning and Construction of the “#”-Shaped Underground Road System in Shanghai CBD Core Area – China
Lifetime Achievement
Martin Knights – United Kingdom
Young Tunneller of the Year
- Gold: Gabriel Lehmann – Germany
- Silver: Wojciech Mleczko – Poland
- Bronze: Xu Chen – China
The awards highlight the international scope of innovation and expertise in tunnelling, from large-scale transport and water infrastructure to underground facilities, construction technologies and equipment development.
Watch the 2026 ITA Tunnelling Awards ceremony.
