An official ceremony has marked the Predejane Tunnel breakthrough (Lot 3) in Serbia. Representatives of the Serbian government, local authorities and a number of officials participated in the event which took place on 19 April 2016.
The Project General Contractor is Euro Alliance Tunnels and the Employer is Koridori Srbje d.o.o. Financing is provided by the European Investment Bank and the Construction Supervision is exercised by the international joint venture Epitsa - Geoconsult.
Predejane Tunnel is situated between the towns of Leskovac and Vladičin Han. The facility is a section of the Pan-European Transport Corridor X and it is part of a road link beginning from Salzburg, Austria and ending in Thessaloniki, Greece. Lot 3 includes Niš– Macedonian Border section, Grdelica – Caričina Dolina and Caričina Dolina - Vladičin Han subsection.
The tunnel is made of two main tubes with a cross-section of 101 m2; the left tube is 874 m long and the right tube is 1073 m long. There are three cross passages, one for automobiles and two for foot passengers. The used construction method is the New Austrian Tunnel Method /NATM/.
The Project complies with all up-to-date European standards and follows the latest technological and ecological requirements.
“There were numerous challenges present in the facility construction process. Constant alternation of various geological species, multiple fault and loose zones and even an active landslide were encountered during the construction works. Despite the unforeseeable circumstances, we succeeded in meeting deadlines and achieving highest quality”, stated Yordan Petkov, Project Manager of Euro Alliance Tunnels. According to him, the Predejane Tunnel breakthrough has proved once again that Euro Alliance’s specialists are professionals with vast experience who are able to cope with various geologic conditions and unforeseeable circumstance in order to realize one of the most complex projects in the field of underground construction.
