The world is seeing an infrastructure boom. There are so many global infrastructure projects coming up. From Norway's ship tunnel to Mumbai's Trans-Harbour link, the list goes and on.. Here we take a look at the five top most global infrastructure projects. -
Norway to build world’s first ship tunnel through coast: Norway plans to build a 1,700-meter (5,610-feet) tunnel for ships – a world first – through a piece of rocky coast to allow vessels avoid a treacherous part of sea. Construction of the Stad Ship Tunnel, which will be 36 meters (118 feet) wide and 49 meters (162 feet) tall, is estimated to cost at least 2.7 billion kroner ($314 million) and is expected to open in 2023. (Pic: Artist impression)
Transportation Minister Ketil Solvik-Olsen had said Wednesday that sea currents and underwater topography in this part of Norway’s southwestern coast ”result in particularly complex wave conditions.” Project manager Terje Andreassen said engineers will have to blast out an estimated eight million tons of rock to build the tunnel, which would allow cruise and freight ships weighing up to 16,000 tons. (Pic: WEF Video, Youtube) -
Mumbai Trans Harbour link: This will be country’s longest sea bridge at 22.5 km. It will connect Mumbai’s eastern suburbs with the mainland across the harbour through a 16.5 km sea bridge and a viaduct. (Pic: Screenshot from MMRDA Video)
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The project will cost around Rs 18,000 crore and completed by 2019. It will connect Sewri in central-east Mumbai with Nhava Seva across the harbour. The BJP government is also building a Rs 3600 crore grand memorial of Chhatrapati Shivaji in Mumbai. (Pic: Screenshot from MMRDA Video)
Analemma Tower: New York design firm Clouds Architecture Office has proposed a tower that, instead of being supported by the ground and reaching up into the sky, would instead hang suspended from an asteroid. The lower end of the tower, closest to the planet surface, would be given over to offices, and above that would be an agricultural area, with sleeping quarters approximately two-thirds of the way up. (Pic: http://www.cloudsao.com/ANALEMMA-TOWER) -
The skyscraper would be powered using space-based solar panels, which would be constantly exposed to sunlight. For water needs, it would have a "semi-closed loop system", filtering and recycling supplies while replenishing them with "condensate captured from clouds and rainwater". (Pic: http://www.cloudsao.com/ANALEMMA-TOWER)
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South China Sea islands: China is actively building artificial islands in the South China Sea, turning them into military and logistical bases. Beijing already has at least seven such bases, equipped with access channels, helipads, radar facilities. etc (Pic: Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative )
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Building up the reefs in the South China Sea, China pursues multiple objectives, including ensuring the safety of expanding shipping lanes, extending maritime protection to its regional waters, and developing capabilities to conduct non-conventional security operations outside the region. (Pic: Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative and Digital Globe)
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Suez Panama canal extension: In March, the Panama Canal Authority (PCA) announced that its major canal expansion project was almost complete. The expansion is truly impressive in scale, and when the new locks finally open for business they will allow containerships of up 14,000 TEU to transit. This is eventually expected to have a significant impact on trade routes. (Pic: Wikipedia)
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The Suez Canal’s lane has just been doubled in width to allow ships to sail in both directions, with plans to develop the land along its banks into an industrial zone.
