Shani Wallis, Editor

Portland continues positive progress on its Willamette River East Side CSO tunnels project. Paul Gribbon, project Program Manager for the City of Portland Bureau of Environmental Services, reported on Wednesday (June 4) that the 7.7m diameter Herrenknecht Mixshield being used by the Kiewit/Bilfinger Berger JV has completed 8,600ft (2,621m) of the single 6.7m i.d. x 9.1km long drive and will breakthrough into the Steel Bridge shaft at the end of June, on schedule. "This will complete the second reach of the project and the machine is going better than expected. We are on time and under budget," said Gribbon.

Gribbon confirmed that the contractor for the job is a joint venture between Kiewit and Bilfinger Berger and that events in Vancouver on the Seymour Capilano contract for Bilfinger Berger has had no impact on the Portland tunnel contract.