On December 16, the "Jianghan Linghang" open-type hard rock tunnel boring machine (TBM), built with the participation of Sinohydro Bureau 8 Co., Ltd., successfully rolled off the production line in Deyang, Sichuan.

The "Jianghan Linghang" open-type TBM has an excavation diameter of 11.93 meters, a total length of approximately 180 meters, and a tunneling section length of 18.35 kilometers. It is a machine specially tailored for the water conveyance tunnel of Section 1 of the civil construction and metal structure and electromechanical installation of the Yangtze River-to-Han River Water Diversion Project undertaken by Sinohydro Bureau 8. It sets a new domestic record for the single-head tunneling length of an ultra-large-diameter TBM and is currently the world's largest open-type hard rock tunnel boring machine.

During the design and manufacturing process, the construction team overcame multiple technical challenges and adopted the most advanced tunneling technologies and design concepts, enabling the machine to cope with complex and variable geological conditions and ensuring efficient, safe, and stable tunneling. This provides valuable experience for the construction of similar large-scale water conservancy projects in the future.

The Yangtze River-to-Han River Water Diversion Project is the first major project to commence construction among the follow-up projects of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project. With a total length of 194.8 kilometers, it connects the Three Gorges Reservoir and the Danjiangkou Reservoir and is a landmark project for building and improving the national backbone water network.