On June 15th, 2025,local time, the tunnel of SimFer Simandou branch railway project in Guinea, which was built by China Railway 18th Bureau, was successfully completed. At this point, all the offline projects of the project were completed, and the "last link" connecting the main railway line was opened, which laid a solid foundation for the project to be opened to traffic as scheduled.

Tunnel interior

SimFer Simandou Railway Branch Project is located in Kangkang Region of Guinea, and it is an important infrastructure for the development of Simandou Iron Mine, the largest green mining project in the world. The main line of the project is 72 kilometers long, and the main construction contents include: 1 tunnel, 5 bridges, 133 culverts, 18.5 million cubic meters of earth and stone works, and railway construction contents such as tracks, power stations and power stations.

Geomorphology around tunnel

The tunnel that runs through this time is 926 meters long, connecting the No.3 and No.4 blocks of Ximandu Iron Mine. It is a single-hole and single-line tunnel, and the tunnel body crosses the 255-meter fault fracture zone, with complex geological conditions and great construction difficulties. During the construction, the project team adhered to the working idea of "pipe advance, strict grouting, short footage, strong support, early closure and diligent measurement", applied advanced drilling and other means to find out the characteristics of surrounding rock, and adopted active reinforcement strategy to carry out high-pressure grouting on the working face, which improved the stability of surrounding rock; Extend the overlapping length of pipe shed in the entrance section to build a more stable advanced support system; In tunnel excavation, the "four-step" method is innovatively adopted, and the excavation and initial support processes are closely connected, which reduces the exposure time of surrounding rock, effectively guarantees the safety of personnel and the construction quality, and lays a solid foundation for the smooth penetration of the tunnel.

Project aerial photography

While promoting the project construction efficiently, the project team has continuously strengthened the collaborative management between the front and back offices in strict accordance with the requirements of fine management of the project, adhered to international management standards, established a sound quality and safety control system, and actively fulfilled its social responsibilities. The project has set an industry benchmark in HSE (Health, Safety and Environment) management and community co-construction.

The project team won the "Wontanara Award for Excellence" awarded by the owner.

On June 11th, 2025,local time, the project team won the "Excellent Wontanara Award", the highest award awarded by SimFer Company of Rio Tinto in Guinea, and became the only non-Guinean enterprise to win the award in its "Excellent Contractor in 2025" selection.

It is reported that after the completion of the project, it will become an important part of the new trans-Guinea economic corridor, providing strong kinetic energy for the economic development of the region.(This article is from Daodao www.seetao.com, official website. It must not be reproduced without permission, otherwise it will be investigated. Please indicate Daodao.com+original link for reprinting.) See the editor of the Belt and Road column of Daodao.com/Yin Jiahui