Skip to main content

Chinese tunnel projects discussed

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Wen Jiabao, Premier of the People’s Republic of China, recently visited the Herrenknecht plant in Guangzhou as part of her trip to China. The delegation included, among others, 20 high-level representatives of German industry, and Dr Martin Herrenknecht, chairman of Herrenknecht, presented the company to Chancellor Merkel and Premier Wen, and talked about important Chinese and international reference projects.
May 14, 2012 Read time: 2 mins
Seen in front of the Herrenknecht EPB Shield being used for the Metro in Dongguan are visitors to the company's plant including (second from left) Dr Martin Herrenknecht; Dr Angela Merkel (third from left) and Wen Jiabao (fourth from left)
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Wen Jiabao, Premier of the People’s Republic of China, recently visited the 2592 Herrenknecht plant in Guangzhou as part of her trip to China.

The delegation included, among others, 20 high-level representatives of German industry, and Dr Martin Herrenknecht, chairman of Herrenknecht, presented the company to Chancellor Merkel and Premier Wen, and talked about important Chinese and international reference projects.

In addition, he introduced a tunnel boring machine (TBM), an Earth Pressure Balance Shield with a diameter of 6.95m, which is being used to construct the Metro Line 2 in Dongguan.

Herrenknecht has been represented on the Chinese growth market since the delivery of the first machines for the construction of the Beijing metro in 2000, and the company generates around 20% of its group sales in China.

The huge economic growth and increasing urbanisation result in a high demand for efficient underground traffic and supply infrastructures, and to date Herrenknecht technology has been used in 275 projects, mostly for inner-city tunnel construction. Some 480km of tunnel tubes have been built using its technology, while a further 200km are being planned.

Among the most important projects is the construction of two double-storey traffic tunnels in Shanghai to connect Changxing river island with the mainland, work carried out using two of the world’s biggest TBMs with diameters of 15.43m each.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Chinese TBMs make breakthroughs
    March 29, 2023
    Two Chinese-made TBMs have made breakthrough on major projects.
  • German Chinese partnership deal struck at senior level
    November 5, 2015
    Chinese premier Li Keqiang and German chancellor Merkel recently witnessed a strategic agreement between XCMG and SAP Software. The two political leaders were present when XCMG chairman Wang Min and SAP Software vice president and managing director of Greater China Li Qiang signed a strategic cooperation agreement. This formed a major part of the signing ceremony for Sino-German Economic & Trade Cooperation Projects held at Shangri-La Hotel in Hefei, capital of east China's Anhui Province.
  • Speed and precision make for perfect tunnelling combination
    May 21, 2014
    Speed and precision have been the hallmarks of a number of major road tunnelling projects across the globe over the last 12 months, as the latest sector equipment from leading manufacturers has found itself in high demand. Guy Woodford reports Herrenknecht tunnel boring machines (TBM) have been busy tunnelling under major Chinese rivers, demonstrating phenomenal speed, top safety levels and extreme precision while playing a key role in the construction of road tunnels in the Yangtze River Delta. The Yang
  • Tunnel driven by TBM
    August 7, 2020
    A major tunnel drive has been carried out by a TBM in Italy.