Construction On World’s First Ship Tunnel To Begin In 2027 As Norway Secures Funding

Norway is going ahead with the construction of the world’s first ship tunnel, with the work expected to begin in the first half of 2027.

The Norwegian Coastal Administration (Kystverket) announced that it is looking for contractors for the Stad Ship Tunnel project.

The announcement came after the country’s center-left paries reached an agreement to incorporate funding for the project in the revised budget.

The tunnel was first mentioned in an article published in the Nordre Bergenhus Amtstidende newspaper in 1874.

The world’s largest tunnel will be situated on the Stadlandet Peninsula, and will span 1.7 km through solid rock or 2.2 km when entrance sections are included.

I will be 50 m tall and 36 m wide and will be excavated through the narrowest part of the Peninsula, linking Moldefjord and Kjødepollen in the Vanylvsfjord region.

It would be big enough to accommodate vessels equivalent to the size of Norway’s coastal route ships, other cargo ships, ferries and cruise ships.

The Norwegian Coastal Administration said that 81% of ship traffic will be able to use the tunnel.

Cruise ships will sail at a speed of 8 knots and complete th journey in 10 minutes.

Norway will remove 3 million m3 of rock to begin construction of the tunnel using the drill and blast method to carve the tunnel through hard gneiss rock beneath the peninsula.

“The evaluation has been completed,” Harald Inge Johnsen, one of the project’s managers, said in a press release. “Once the contract award is announced, there will be a standstill period for any complaints before the contract can be signed as planned.”

More contracts regarding demolition work near the site are also ready to be tendered. The tunnel will enhance navigational safety and reliability for maritime traffic along the Norwegian coast.

The major challenge is the rough weather, powerful currents and high waves, which have led to many deaths in the waters since WWII.