John Holland, CPB Contractors (CPB) and Ghella joint venture (JCG JV) has been awarded the Eastern Tunnelling contract in Sydney CBD, Australia.

The consortium will be responsible to deliver: 

• 3.5 km tunnels from The Bays to the Sydney CBD; 
• A tunnel boring machine (TBM) launch site at The Bays with two TBMs launched towards Hunter Street; 
• A turnback cavern to the east of the new Hunter Street Station, allowing trains to turn around before travelling back towards Parramatta;  
• Excavation and civil works for two new cavern stations at Pyrmont and Hunter Street in Sydney CBD; and
• More than 8,000 segments to line the tunnels.

It is the third, final and last piece in the tunnelling puzzle to build 24 km metro rail tunnels from Westmead to the Sydney CBD. The estimated cost of the contract is A$1.63 billion (US$1.10 billion) and is scheduled to start in 2023 and completion in 2025.