NEWS

The Wilma and Olga TBMs are the last two of the nine tunnel boring machines to be used in the construction of the Brenner Base Tunnel. After inspection at the Herrenknecht factory in Schwanau, Germany, the first components of the two tunnelling machines were delivered to the Austrian construction site "H53 Pfons-Brenner" in April.

Wilma will excavate the west tunnel of the Brenner Base Tunnel northwards, while her "twin sister" Olga will drive the east tunnel in the same direction.

Both tunnelling machines will excavate around 7.5 km in the direction of Innsbruck. Towards the south, on the other hand, drill&blast tunnelling using the NATM method (New Austrian Tunnelling Method NÖT) will be used.
BBT SE and the consortium consisting of Porr Bau GmbH, Marti GmbH Austria and Marti Tunnel AG Switzerland today welcomed numerous guests of honour to the TBM start-up ceremony for the H53 Pfons-Brenner construction lot, the largest in the Austrian project area.

BBT SE CEOs Martin Gradnitzer and Gilberto Cardola: "No fewer than seven tunnelling machines have dug their way through this mountain and today we are proud to celebrate the start-up of the last two. A big thank you and a hearty "Glück auf" goes not only to the BBT SE team, but also to the workers who labour on our construction sites day after day".

Paloma Aba Garrote, European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA): "It is an honour for me to celebrate the start-up of the two tunnel boring machines (TBMs) named Wilma and Olga for the construction of the Brenner Base Tunnel today.
The BBT is a central part of European transport policy, which aims to create a continuous, efficient and sustainable transport network for our citizens. The European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA) has supported the project financially from the outset as part of the TEN-T and CEF-Transport programmes with a total of €2.3 billion over 15 years. The completion of the Brenner Base Tunnel is our gift to the next generation of European citizens and our contribution to improving their quality of life."

Philippe Chantraine, EU Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE): "It is a great pleasure and honour for me as a representative of the European Commission and our Coordinator Pat Cox to be here with you today to celebrate the launch of the two tunnel boring machines, Wilma and Olga. Like the previous speaker, on behalf of the European Commission I would like to expressly thank everyone involved in the construction of the BBT. The BBT symbolises a united Europe in which regions, States and the EU cooperate for the benefit of their citizens. I wish the two TBMs Wilma and Olga and everyone involved in the H53 Pfons-Brenner lot a quick and, above all, safe completion of the work. The European Commission will continue to stand by your side".

Anton Mattle, Governor of Tyrol: "The Brenner Base Tunnel is not only the largest railway project in Europe, but also a beacon of hope for our fellow citizens in Tyrol, who would like to see a shift in freight transport from road to rail. For this reason, the start-up of the last two tunnel boring machines of the Brenner Base Tunnel is an important milestone that brings us both joy and optimism for the future."

Arno Kompatscher, Governor of the Autonomous Province of Bolzano: "With the start-up of the last two tunnel boring machines, we are a big step closer to the goal of a direct and faster connection between Austria and Italy. The Brenner Base Tunnel will bring us closer together within the Euregio and also revolutionise local public transport. This project shows once again that cross-border cooperation in the field of mobility and transport is the only way forward for a sustainable future."

Judith Engel, CEO of ÖBB Infrastruktur AG: "ÖBB offers top quality on the Austrian rail network. Today, we are building the infrastructure for the rail transport of tomorrow. By the end of 2025, 130 kilometres of the new Koralm Railway line - including the 33 kilometres of the Koralm Tunnel - will be in operation. We expect the Semmering Base Tunnel to go into operation in 2030. The Brenner Base Tunnel, the centrepiece of the Brenner railway axis, will complete our transalpine rail transport service at the beginning of 2032. We congratulate our colleagues at BBT SE on the progress of the project."

Daniela Lezzi, CEO of Tunnel Ferroviario del Brennero (TFB), RFI: "The Brenner Base Tunnel, which is of great importance in Europe, is intended to unite the countries and promote sustainable, safe and efficient mobility. RFI is delighted to see the progress of the project, especially as it is also pushing ahead with the expansion of the Fortezza-Verona line, an important infrastructure measure for which funding totalling around EUR 3 billion has already been provided and which is partly co-financed by the European Union. And finally, I would also like to emphasise the importance of the cooperation with the project company BBT SE. These synergies have in fact allowed, and will allow in the future, the achievement of goals such as the milestone we are celebrating today, to deliver a unique infrastructure to Austria and Italy, and more generally to Europe as a whole."

Another special feature of the last two TBMs of the Brenner Base Tunnel is that they not only excavate these tunnel stretches northwards, but also install the tubbing rings, the precast concrete parts that serve as the inner shell of the tunnel.

Unlike in the neighbouring construction lot H41 Sillschlucht-Pfons, the lack of space on the H53 Pfons-Brenner construction site prevented production of the tubbing rings directly on the site itself. By transporting the rings by rail, however, around 40,000 lorry journeys can be avoided, thus minimising the environmental impact.
The first rings were delivered to the construction site at the beginning of July. During the operating period of the two TBMs Wilma and Olga, around 54,000 rings, which are produced at the Max Bögl plant in Senghenthal, Bavaria, will be installed in the two main tunnels.

Basic parameters
Diameter of the cutting head: 10.37 m
Advance power of the cutting head drive: 4550 kW
Operating torque of the cutting head drive: 26400 kNm
Total weight (TBM incl. main drive): approx. 2600 tonnes
Weight of the cutting head: 260 tons
Total length (TBM incl. main drive): approx. 183 m
Number of transports: approx. 170
Number of individual components (TBM incl. main drive): approx. 80,000

On April 4, 2023, the contract for the construction lot "H53 Pfons-Brenner" was awarded to a bidder consortium consisting of Porr Bau GmbH, Marti GmbH Austria and Marti Tunnel AG Switzerland.

The works for the construction of the tunnels on the last construction lot of the Brenner Base Tunnel were thus contracted. The contract for what is currently the largest construction lot on Austrian territory totals 959 million euros. The duration of the work for this project section is estimated at 70.5 months.