Peri delivers 10,000 tonnes of formwork to Fehmarnbelt Tunnel

The parts delivered to the site in Denmark are assembled to allow for efficient concreting processes. Photo: Peri

In a statement today, the German manufacturer said that it had delivered the last of twelve ship loads of steel formwork components for 79 standard tunnel elements which will form the Fehmarnbelt Tunnel linking Denmark and Germany.

It said that more than a million components, produced in Poland, Italy and in Weißenhorn, Germany, were transported via twelve shiploads and more than 250 truckloads to the project’s tunnel factory in Rødbyhavn, Denmark.

Peri said that the tunnel would be constructed using the incremental launching method in which sections are manufactured on site and then pushed longitudinally (or launched) into their final position.

Each standard tunnel element will measure 217m in length and weigh 73,000 tons. The tunnel will also comprise nine 24m-long concrete sections.

Standard tunnel elements will be produced on site in a total of five separate production lines. Each one will be made of nine separate sections measuring 45m by 9m and weighing more than 8,000 tons.

An image of the tunnel factory and dry docks at Rødbyhavn, on the Danish side of the tunnel, June 2023. Image: Femern A/S

Casting each element in a factory the size of 140 football fields takes 36 hours of continuous pouring. The first tunnel segment on the project is expected to be laid before summer 2024.

“The solution developed by Peri forms the foundation for monolithic concreting, which reduces the risk of water penetration during tunnel operation,” Peri said in a statement. “In addition, a tunnel section is concreted without ties in the outer walls.

“At the same time, the approach means considerable savings in material and labour costs, thereby reducing the use of raw materials, among other things.”

The Fehmarnbelt tunnel is being built by Femern A/S, a specially created subsidiary of Danish state-owned transport company Sund & Bælt. When completed in 2029, it will be the longest immersed tube tunnel in the world, with an immersed section stretching 17.6km.

The 42m wide tunnel will comprise five tubes: two 2-lane motorways; two electrified rail tunnels; and one emergency corridor. The main contractor on the project is Fehmarn Link Contractors, a consortium comprising Vinci, BAM, Per Aarsleff, Wayss & Freytag Ingenieubau and Max Bögl Stiftung.