On October 18, China Railway 912\913 Earth Pressure Balance Tunnel Boring Machines (EPB TBMs) developed and manufactured by China Railway Engineering Equipment Group (CREG), a subsidiary of China Railway Hi-tech Industry Corp Ltd. (CRHIC), passed the acceptance inspection by the Singaporean client and successfully rolled off the production line. Both TBMs will serve the construction of the Cross Island Line (CRL) Project CR109 of Singapore.

The CR109 project, one of the Phase 1 works of the cross-island MRT line in Singapore, is to build a double-entrance single-line tunnel with a tunneling length of 2107m and 2116m respectively. It passes mainly through the ancient alluvial layer. The maximum water pressure in the center of the tunnel is about 4.3 bar. Adapting to the geological characteristics of the construction site, CREG’s project team developed two EPB TBMs with an excavation diameter of 7.22m incorporating advanced systems to ensure smooth, efficient tunnel boring of the project. The cross-island MRT line will connect the east and west ends of Singapore as a more convenient, faster means of low-carbon transportation for the public.