Webuild consortium secures €1.6bn contract for Santomarco Tunnel in Italy

Webuild Group, as part of a consortium, has secured a €1.6bn ($1.86bn) contract for the high-speed Salerno-Reggio Calabria railway line in Italy.

The contract encompasses the Paola-Cosenza doubling section, which spans approximately 22.2km in Calabria, primarily underground.

Webuild will lead the consortium, which includes Ghella, Pizzarotti, and SELI, the group’s subsidiary focused on tunnelling. The project is anticipated to create around 1,500 jobs.

The project, commissioned by RFI, features the Santomarco Tunnel, which measures more than 15km in length.

The tunnel will be constructed approximately 100m from the existing single-track tunnel, which will be decommissioned upon completion.

Four tunnel boring machines (TBMs) will be employed to excavate the new double-tube, single-track tunnel.

This project marks a key step in completing the Salerno-Reggio Calabria line, supporting the economic and social development of Southern Italy as part of the Scandinavian-Mediterranean corridor in the TEN-T Network.

The route will traverse the Province of Cosenza, passing through several municipalities, including Paola, San Lucido, Rende, Montalto Uffugo, San Vincenzo la Costa, and San Fili.

This strategic route aims to connect the southern regions of Italy with Northern Italy and Europe.

Plans include the construction of nine railway bridges and two viaducts, one spanning 350m over the A2 motorway and another 205m over the Settimo stream.

Additionally, a new station will be established in Montalto Uffugo to serve the local community and the university campus in Rende.

The new infrastructure is expected to enhance the capacity of rail connections between the Tyrrhenian coast and the interior regions of Calabria, improving access to Cosenza and bolstering the Bari-Taranto-Gioia Tauro freight route.

The completed line will facilitate high-capacity rail transport to currently underserved areas, such as Cilento, Vallo di Diano, the Ionian coast, Cosenza, and the Reggino area. It is expected to reduce travel time between Rome and Reggio Calabria.

Webuild is also engaged in constructing Lot 1A Battipaglia-Romagnano on the same railway line, which involves 35km of new line and a junction with the Potenza-Metaponto section.

In February this year, the company initiated work on the Saginara Tunnel using the largest TBM in Europe.

With the addition of the Paola-Cosenza stretch, Webuild is now responsible for approximately 60km of the high-speed railway section between Salerno and Reggio Calabria.

The company is currently involved in 19 projects in Southern Italy, including the islands, which encompass over 320km of high-speed and high-capacity railway lines.