Poyry awarded tunnel assignment for Oslo,Norway

expat network

Poyry awarded tunnel assignment for Oslo,Norway

Societá Italiana per Condotte D’Acqua S.p.A. has chosen Pöyry to carry out rock and tunnel engineering for the Follo Line in Oslo, Norway. Pöyry’s assignment includes most of the design needed for 5.5 km of tunnels close to the city centre of Oslo, 4 km of which is for high-speed train traffic.

The Follo Line connects Oslo with the city of Ski in the east-bound Follo district. The Follo Line tunnel system will be the longest in Norway with a total length of 20 km and a maximum train speed of 250 km/h. It will meet the increased demand for rail traffic capacity caused by the growing population in the greater Oslo area, and will serve an estimated 150,000 passengers daily after its completion by the end of 2021.

Condotte is the EPC contractor of the part that Pöyry is engineering, and the end client is the Norwegian National Rail Administration. The tunnel will be excavated using ‘Drill & Blast’ and ‘Drill & Split’ methods. All engineering will be carried out as Building Information Modelling (BIM). The project includes some unique challenges, such as the existing underground facilities and the relocation of the underground river Alna.

“This is the first large transportation engineering assignment we have won in Norway. Our experts in Norway and Finland are working jointly to tackle the challenges of the assignment in an innovative and reliable way that is characteristic to our work,” says Mikko Inkala, President of Infrastructure Design at Pöyry.

The value of the order is not disclosed. The order has been recognised within the Regional Operations order stock in Q1 2016.

Source: EPC Engineer

Moving Abroad Checklist

Initial Considerations

Will your partner be travelling with you?

If so, what will they be giving up in your present home and will they be able to continue with their career in your new home? You will need to check whether a separate visa is required for your partner to work or if your visa gives that right. If they are unable to work you will need to decide on the effect on your finances and what alternatives are available to give a fulfilling life (home business, training, voluntary work).

Are you taking family with you?

Moving with family raises many exciting opportunities, but also can create challenges. The HSBC Expat Explorer survey indicates that expat kids can take six months to settle in to their new country (see article). Getting young or even older children to prepare to move and leave their friends and family behind can be a challenge and should be thought through.

The options for education is another area that needs to be thought through.

Moving your child to a new country with a different education system can be a great opportunity to broaden their experience, but if they are close to key exams the timing can make this inadvisable. If you do take your family with you, it is important to decide between joining the local school system or choosing an international school.

Where will you be living?

Whether you will be living in a house or apartment, furnished or unfurnished, these decisions will affect what you need to take with you. The time you are planning to live overseas will also affect whether you should leave your property at home empty, rent it out or sell it. See the article Sell, Store or Ship.