On September 24, the Ceremony for Breakthrough of Ngong Tunnel of Nairobi-Naivasha Standard Gauge Railway Project was held at the tunnel entrance. Among the attendees were Michael Waweru- Chairman of Kenya Railways, Abigael Mbagaya- Vice Chairman of National Land Commission of Kenya, An Aijun- CRBC Vice President and General Manager of Nairobi-Naivasha SGR Project, as well as over 200 representatives from Kenya Railways, Ministry of Land, Supervision Consortium and various construction companies.

Participants Take Group Photo

An Aijun- CRBC Vice President and General Manager of Nairobi-Naivasha SGR Project noted that Ngong Tunnel is currently the longest railway tunnel in East Africa and is also a major controlled node of Nairobi-Naivasha SGR Project. The Project Team overcame such challenges as water gushing, water pressure bias, shallow burial depth and structural faults, tackled technical difficulties in design and construction in the geological fault zone of the Great Rift Valley in East Africa, and successfully realized safe and smooth breakthrough of the Ngong Tunnel. The punctual breakthrough of the Ngong Tunnel means that the construction of “Three Tunnels and Four Bridges” has achieved phased results, which provides a strong guarantee for the completion of the main project as planned and the smooth development of the joint commissioning and test, marks that the project construction has entered a new stage, and lays a solid foundation for smooth opening of the railway in the coming year.

In the meantime, he also required that we should always adhere to the concept of high-standard and high-quality development, make Nairobi-Naivasha SGR a first-class railway project with advanced management, scientific technologies and strict organization. We should also always insist on the fundamental philosophy of quality-oriented and safety-based, and strictly follow the bottom line of quality and safety red line in construction and production. Meanwhile, we should continue to properly protection local environmental, integrate local elements, proactively participate in public welfare activities and benefit local people in accordance with the idea of achieving shared growth through discussion and collaboration.

Abigael Mbagaya- Vice Chairman of National Land Commission of Kenya expressed warm congratulations on the breakthrough of the Ngong Tunnel, extended great appreciation for the safe, high-quality and efficient construction achieved by the Chinese contractors, and emphasized that the National Land Commission of Kenya will fully carry out the land acquisition and demolition, thus providing strong guarantee for the construction of the railway projects in Kenya.

Michael Waweru- Chairman of Kenya Railways expressed his sincere admiration for the outstanding achievements made by the Chinese construction team facing diversified difficulties and challenges. He noted that the Kenyan people have experienced the convenience brought about by SGR, and the railway construction has driven the rapid economic and social development of Kenya, realized technology transfer and integration of local elements, and promoted the industrial upgrading. He further noted that Kenyan Railways will as always fulfil its responsibilities and leverage great support to the construction of railways in Kenya.

Representatives of contractors agreed unanimously that they would take the opportunity to organize carefully, construct scientifically and keep foraging ahead according to the unified deployment of the General Manager Department of the Project, and take every effort to complete all the production and construction tasks of the Nairobi-Naivasha SGR Project in an all-round and high-quality manner.