Website www.zakon.kz Terms of commissioning of the first tunnel in Kazakhstan is being postponed till next year

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Tunnel should have been put into operation in September according to work schedule.

Construction of first underground tunnel in Kazakahstan is being carried out in full speed. About 200 personnel and 40 units of equipment and machinery are working in two shifts every day. Already about 75 % of tunnel is ready, Otyrar.kz writes.

Despite the increased pace the Contractors do not manage to complete construction works in time. According to the work schedule the Tunnel should have been put into operation in September, but now it is planned to be completed in the mid 2016.

"Expertise have given the permission late for construction works, because of this the facility completion deadline were moved, - says Mr. Ahmad Naimikha, Project Manager. – Moreover, while working we have loose rock, and ther were a lot of caving, and we have to first strengthen and only then drill".

Tunnel with the length of about 1 km cost 2 billion 800 mln. tenge of Budget. It will conenct Shymkent and Taraz. Construction of highway itself will not be completed on time. Most part of road (40,5 km) has been already finished, and about 5 km of highway is left to be completed. The works were extended for three more months.

Mustafa Tailan, Resident Engineer og section No.2:
- The Contractor was given late access to the section. When we commenced works, many plots along the road have not been acquired. Now this issue is solved. The Employer hav e provided counter- proposal of extending Contract for 3 months.

The contsruction works under “Western Europe – Western China” corridor sections that have been commenced in 2013, are being carried out by two big companies from Turkey and China. Especially for this purpose about 14 bln tenge has been allocated, 10 bln. of them have already been disbursed. Funds were spent for construction of roadbed, two bridges and three overpasses for transport interchanges at different levels and five cattlepasses.