At the invitation of the Ghella construction company, the Italian Ambassador to Norway, Stefano Nicoletti, participated—along with construction site workers—in the celebration of the feast of Saint Barbara, patron saint and protector of miners, stonecutters, bricklayers, and users of explosive materials.
A multilingual mass was celebrated more than one hundred meters underground, where the Italian construction company, in a joint venture with the Norwegian AF Group, is excavating an 11-kilometer tunnel that will provide the city of Oslo with an alternative water supply for the coming decades.
The new aqueduct will bring drinking water to Oslo from Holsjord, in the Lier area, through several connecting tunnels totaling approximately 18 kilometers, 11 of which are being excavated using Tunnel Boring Machines (TBMs). Currently, Ghella’s TBM has completed excavation of almost 10 of the total 11 kilometers, or 92% of the tunnel.
The completion of the TBM work is scheduled for January 20, 2026, a full six months earlier than the original date of July 13, 2026. The next phase involves the dismantling of the machine and related systems and the installation of the cast iron pipes that will transport the drinking water, with completion of the entire project scheduled for the end of 2027.
Ambassador Nicoletti, who immediately after the religious celebration addressed a message of greeting to the approximately 150 workers from various countries involved in the work, expressed his particular delight at the invitation and emphasized: “Ghella represents one of the best examples of how Italian technology and expertise can play a crucial role in the strategic infrastructure sector. Tunnel excavation using the “mole” represents an important alternative to the traditional methods of excavation using explosives, prevalent in Norway, and is a technique in which Ghella and other Italian groups have a competitive advantage. I am pleased to see that the The tunnel work with the TBM is nearing completion, well ahead of schedule. I am therefore confident that the successful implementation of this project will encourage the use of Italian tunnel boring machines in other infrastructure projects in Norway. The partnership with AF Gruppen therefore represents an example of successful synergies between Italian and Norwegian industries in a strategic sector such as infrastructure.
