- April 10, 2017
- Posted by: Ana-Maria Ilinca
- Category: Uncategorized
It is now formally stated that Stad Ship Tunnel is part of the Norwegian National Transport Plan (NTP) in the period of 2018 to 2029. This paves the way for the Norwegian Coastal Administration efforts to build the world’s first full-scale ship tunnel.
In the NTP 2018-2029 the Stad ship tunnel has been granted funding in the first period of the plan (six years). Calculations performed in conjunction with the technical pilot project shows that the ship tunnel has an estimated cost of NOK 2.7 billion. Funding of NOK 1.5 billion is included in the first period of the NTP, 2018 to 2023.
This is good news, and in line with NCA recommendations as part of the impact assessment. There are still many pieces of the puzzle that needs to be put into place before construction can start, but we have previously stated that the actual construction could be at the earliest in 2019, says project manager for Stad ship tunnel at NCA, Terje Andreassen.
NCAs recommendations were made on the basis of monetized and non-monetized impacts.
The impact assessment and the technical pilot project is part of the pilot project that the NCA shall deliver to the Ministry of Transport and Communication in the spring of 2017. Further, the project will undergo an external quality assurance process (KS2) before the project is presented to the Parliament, who then formally decides on project funding. During a press conference in early March this year, consensus among a majority in Parliament for the realization of the world’s first full-scale ship tunnel was presented.
After the news that the NCA will build the world’s first full-scale ship tunnel was presented, there has been a lot of interest in this innovative project, both in Norway and from abroad.
We experience great interest in the project, beyond that it is a project that will secure safe journeys and transportation of passengers and freight on the most exposed and dangerous part of the Norwegian coast. In recent weeks, we have shared film, photographs and interviews with journalists in the UK, the US, Germany, Poland, Brazil, Argentina and Australia. We expect the interest to become even greater when the actual construction begins, says Andreassen.
Reference: kystverket.no
Image Credits: Kystverket / Norwegian Coastal Administration – Flickr