Translation of Statens vegvesen's (The Norwegian Public Roads Administration) press release;

One year has passed since the shooting base Eivind Lien in Skanska and then Bokn Mayor Osmund Våga Pressed the button for the first ointment in the main races in what will be the world's longest and deepest road tunnel.

Since then, the work has gone full time and the tunnel operation has had good production. At Bokn, contractor Skanska has already blown out over 3 kilometers in each of the main races and has already started work on post -work in the tunnels. Implenia/Stangeland has the contract E03 from the south, and there is also progress according to the plan with a length of just over 2 kilometers in each of the main races. When Easter is over, there is light in the tunnel. The mayor of Randaberg municipality will then press the button and there will be an impact on Harestad in Randaberg municipality.

Good progress on Bokn

- The contractor Skanska has had good progress on blasting in the tunnel. This is despite the fact that a lot of heavy fuse has been needed on Laupland, as the mountain conditions on the six tunnel stitches have varied. There has also been some injection and sometimes water under high pressure. Skanska has now blown out the first mountain rooms where pumps will be placed to pump the water out of the tunnel in both the construction phase and later in the operating phase, says project manager on the E04 contract Odd Erik Haugen.

Until mid -March, in each main race, approx. 3250 meters, which is 35 per cent of the total tunnel length Skanska will blow up from Bokn. The culvert that will maintain the local road to Vågshaug under E39 has also been completed, as planned and to good quality, says project manager, Odd Erik Haugen.

Rash on Harestad after Easter

- Against Harestad, rock quality has been better than expected and the production has therefore gone very well. 25 per cent of the tunnel from Mekjarvik has now been blown out, ie approx. 2150 meters in each main race. This progress has resulted in expecting a rash against Harestad just after Easter. Also against Kvitsøy, rock quality has been good, and the progress goes as planned, says project manager on the E03 contract, Anne-Merete Gilje.

At Kvitsøy is approaching the end of the E15 Following the contract, the contractor, the work community Hæhre/Risa, will end its works on May 8, 2024. Furthermore, a high voltage cable will be laid in the Kvitsøytunellen in June and August. The E02 contract is scheduled to be awarded in May, and it is Skanska and Implenia/Stangeland who compete for the very largest contract in Rogfast. If everything goes according to plan, work starts after the summer holidays so that the downtime of the facility between E15 and E02 becomes minimal. The E02 is the most complicated contract, with top -lane intersection, two roundabouts and two ventilation shafts of a diameter of 9 meters, which will go down 250 meters down to the main runs. The tunnel operation will go towards Randaberg in the south to Bokn in the north.

Spacing of cod during the spawning period February-March

On February 1 this year, the filling within the pier at Mekjarvik, as a measure to protect the spawning period for cod in the area, started according to the requirements of the state manager. The pier has now been filled with 220000 cubic meters with mass from the tunnel operation and is completed on 31 March. You then resume filling in the sea from April. There are also restrictions on the spawning period for cod at Føresvik in the north, the rock masses have been transported to Husøy at barges. This transport has worked well, but has had some downtime due to the weather. In total, the barge transport has now passed the Boknasund Bridge as much as 3200 times round trip, says project manager Odd Erik Haugen.

Green machines for the green shift

Statens vegvesen wants to be a contributor to the green shift and hence the contractors Implenia/Stangeland and Skanska have used several electrical machines such as spraying rigs, cargo dumps and barbed machine on Rogfast. It is not yet approved to use batteries, and the current that supplies the construction machines is therefore retrieved from the outside the tunnel via cable.