YIT builds the first bridge of Rail Baltica
YIT Corporation Press release, November 28, 2019, at 3 p.m.
Today, the cornerstone of the first object on the Rail Baltica main line, the Saustinõmme viaduct, was laid to mark the beginning of Rail Baltica's high-speed rail link.
Saustinõmme viaduct, which crosses the main route of Rail Baltica, is the first cooperation project between Rail Baltic Estonia and the Estonian Road Administration in establishing Rail Baltica. Various intersections between the future Rail Baltica and the existing infrastructure will be built in cooperation with the Road Administration and major network operators in the coming years. This includes building highway bypasses, relocating high-voltage lines and gas pipelines, and so on.
“During the last couple of years, the Rail Baltica project in Estonia has progressed in good speed. The detailed technical design is in progress, we have three great solutions to choose from for the RB Ülemiste joint terminal, and the technical designing of the RB Pärnu terminal is about to begin. It is gratifying that today we were able to announce the start of the construction of Rail Baltica in Estonia and to jointly place the cornerstone on the Saustinõmme highway bypass. The continued strong support from the European Union for the project, which was reaffirmed at today's event”, said Riia Sillave, Head of Rail Baltic Estonia.
Part of the construction contract is also to build a 4.1-kilometer four-lane highway with a connection between Luige and Saku junctions. In addition to the Saustinõmme viaduct crossing the Rail Baltic route, new twin bypasses of the Saku junction and an animal tunnel are planned for the section. All works should be completed by the second quarter of 2021.
“We are proud to be the contractor for Rail Baltica’s first concrete construction project. We are pleased with the positive spirit of cooperation that characterizes the project. We encourage Rail Baltica, as one of the largest clients engaged in infrastructure projects in Estonia, to take the lead in introducing more stringent occupational safety practices to the Estonian market,” said Kari Kauniskangas, President and CEO of YIT.
The total cost of the construction works is approximately 19 million euros inc VAT 20%. The construction is financed by the Cohesion Fund to the Road Administration works and the Saustinõmme viaduct by Rail Baltic Estonia OÜ.
According to Taavi Aas, Minister of Economic Affairs and Infrastructure of Estonia, it is important to move quickly forward with the project in good speed.
“Rail Baltica is the most important co-operation project of the Baltic States, so every event where we see actual progress of the project is significant. Equally important is good domestic and inter-agency co-operation, and I believe that Rail Baltic Estonia, and the Estonian Road Administration and the Joint Venture of the Baltic States RB Rail AS will be able to successfully implement the co-operation signed today at the future Rail Baltica sites”, said Aas.
Prime Minister of Estonia Jüri Ratas and Henrik Hololei, Director General of the European Commission's Directorate-General for Transport, gave welcoming remarks at today's festive event.
Rail Baltica is an environmentally friendly and convenient railway connection that connects Estonia with the southern neighbors and Central Europe. The infrastructure will allow passengers for example to reach Tallinn from Pärnu in 40 minutes and Riga in 2 hours.
For further information, please contact:
Mika Leppänen, SVP, Infrastructure projects, The Baltic Countries, YIT Corporation, tel. +37 126 647 566, mika.leppanen@yit.lv
Priit Pruul, Head of Communications, Rail Baltic Estonia, tel. +372 5598 6149, priit.pruul@rbe.ee
Pirita Tiusanen, Communications Manager, YIT Corporation, tel. +358 44 240 9822, pirita.tiusanen@yit.fi
YIT is the largest Finnish and significant North European construction company. We develop and build apartments and living services, business premises and entire areas. We are also specialised in demanding infrastructure construction and paving. Together with our customers, our nearly 10,000 professionals are creating more functional, attractive and sustainable cities and environments. We work in 11 countries: Finland, Russia, Scandinavia, Baltic Countries, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Poland. The new YIT was born when over 100-year-old YIT Corporation and Lemminkäinen Corporation merged on February 1, 2018. Our restated pro forma revenue for 2018 was approximately EUR 3.2 billion. YIT Corporation's share is listed on Nasdaq Helsinki Oy. www.yitgroup.com
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