China Road and Bridge Corporation Consortium Completes Breakthrough of Both Tubes of Bosnia and Herzegovina's Kvanj Tunnel

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 7, the Kvanj Tunnel of the Kvanj–Buna Motorway Project on Pan-European Corridor 5C achieved breakthrough of both tubes. The project is invested in and constructed by JP Autoceste FBiH, the motorway company of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with China Road and Bridge Engineering Co., Ltd. taking the lead, forming a consortium with Azerbaijan's AzVirt and Bosnia and Herzegovina's Hering to carry out construction. The Kvanj Tunnel adopts a twin-tube structure, with the right tube 2,645 meters long and the left tube 2,720 meters long, and is an important controlling works on Corridor 5C south of Mostar.

The Kvanj–Buna motorway section where the Kvanj Tunnel is located has a total length of approximately 5.2 kilometers and, in addition to the tunnel, also includes the approximately 330-meter-long Rotimski Potok Viaduct, the Rujevice Overpass, and approximately 2 kilometers of open motorway section. This section is part of the Mostar South–Buna section and, once completed, will connect to the motorway system of Corridor 5C in southern Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The construction contract for the Kvanj–Buna section was signed on October 4, 2024, with a contract amount of EUR 125,231,500, excluding VAT, and a contract duration of 30 months. The project is financed by a European Investment Bank loan and a European Union Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF) grant, with the relevant project materials listing a European Investment Bank loan of EUR 100 million and an approved EU grant of EUR 43.8 million.

Excavation work on the Kvanj Tunnel began at the end of October 2025. After approximately 10 months of underground construction, the two tunnel tubes achieved breakthrough in September 2026. The construction schedule published by the project owner shows that after the tunnel breakthrough, lining, pavement, electromechanical systems, and supporting motorway works will continue, and the Kvanj Tunnel is scheduled for full completion by the end of 2027.

The project adopts the FIDIC Yellow Book contract model, with the contractor bearing the corresponding design and construction responsibilities. In addition to the main construction contract, the project supervision contract is undertaken by Proyapi Engineering and Consulting, with a contract amount of EUR 4,485,200; the technical assistance services for the project implementing unit are undertaken by Italy's Technital, with a contract amount of EUR 760,300.

The Mostar South–Buna works, where the Kvanj–Buna section is located, have a total length of approximately 15 kilometers and consist of two sub-sections, Mostar South–Tunnel Kvanj and Tunnel Kvanj–Buna, with JP Autoceste FBiH responsible for project implementation. The European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development participate in financing the relevant sections of Corridor 5C, and the European Union provides partial grant support through the Western Balkans Investment Framework.

Pan-European Corridor 5C starts in Hungary in the north and runs south through Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina to connect to the Port of Ploče on the Adriatic Sea. Within Bosnia and Herzegovina, Corridor 5C is the main north-south motorway corridor, and the Kvanj–Buna section is located on the section south of Mostar. Following the breakthrough of both tubes, the project has entered the subsequent construction phase of tunnel structures, electromechanical systems, and supporting motorway works.