GS E&C

◆ Two 15.6-metre-diameter TBMs complete their tunnelling sections, demonstrating GS E&C’s precision construction and project management capabilities
◆ North East Link marked GS E&C’s entry into the Australian construction market in 2021 and was Victoria’s largest road and tunnel PPP project at the time
◆ Project targeting opening by the end of 2028, with a continued focus on quality and safety throughout the remaining works

GS E&C has achieved a major milestone in Australia’s North East Link, its first infrastructure project in the Australian construction market, by successfully completing the tunnel boring machine tunnelling works, further demonstrating its global infrastructure delivery capabilities.

GS E&C announced that the TBM-excavated sections of the approximately 6.5-kilometre tunnel component of Melbourne’s North East Link project had been successfully completed.

The TBM breakthrough marks the completion of the designated tunnelling sections by two tunnel boring machines, each measuring 15.6 metres in diameter, after they successfully reached their respective breakthrough points.

Tunnel construction is a critical component of road infrastructure projects, requiring highly precise construction and systematic programme management. The completion of the tunnelling works represents an important milestone for the North East Link project and demonstrates GS E&C’s capabilities in delivering long-distance tunnels and managing large-scale infrastructure projects.

North East Link is GS E&C’s first infrastructure project in the Australian construction market. The project will connect Melbourne’s M80 Ring Road with the Eastern Freeway and includes the construction of approximately 6.5 kilometres of tunnels, as well as surface road connections and associated infrastructure.

GS E&C is participating in the project as both an equity investor in the Spark consortium and a member of the Design and Construction Joint Venture. In 2021, the Victorian Government entered into a public-private partnership agreement with the Spark consortium for the Primary Package of the North East Link project.

At the exchange rate applicable when the contract was awarded, the total project value of the North East Link package involving GS E&C was approximately KRW 10.1 trillion, of which GS E&C’s construction scope amounted to approximately KRW 2.8 trillion. This represents GS E&C’s second-largest single overseas project, following a plant project awarded in the United Arab Emirates in 2009. At the time of award, the North East Link project was recognised as the largest road infrastructure PPP project ever undertaken in the Australian state of Victoria.

Drawing on its infrastructure construction experience accumulated in Korea and overseas, as well as its PPP project delivery capabilities, GS E&C is steadily progressing the North East Link project in Australia. Following the completion of the TBM tunnelling works, the company will proceed with the remaining works in phases, including the construction of internal road structures within the tunnels, the installation of electrical, lighting and safety systems, and the construction of surface road connections. The project is scheduled to open by the end of 2028.

A GS E&C official said, “The completion of the TBM tunnelling works represents a major milestone for the North East Link project and once again demonstrates GS E&C’s overseas tunnelling capabilities. We will continue to place the highest priority on quality and safety management to ensure the smooth delivery of the remaining works.”