Eurotunnel renews its confidence in Colas Rail for the maintenance of its rail tunnels

Colas Rail won two contracts for the maintenance of the Channel Tunnel tracks awarded by Eurotunnel. Used for the transport of goods and passengers, the two railway tunnels which connect the North of France to the South-East of England represent a network of 200 km of railways. The total amount of the two contracts amounts to 10.4 million euros.

The first contract, for a period of three years, with two additional years as an option, relates to routine maintenance of the 200 km of railways in the network. Colas Rail teams will therefore work both in the two rail terminals, each comprising 10 boarding platforms and 50 km of track, and in the tunnels.

The amount of this first contract is 2.5 million euros.

The second contract won concerns the renewal of the rails. The work, carried out by Colas Rail, will renew all the rails and rail fastenings in the two rail tunnels.

This contract is for a period of three years. To date, the teams have completed the unloading of the Continuous Welded Rails for the year 2022 and are beginning the rail replacement campaigns. These campaigns last three to four months a year for three years and take place at night on weekends. About 60 people are mobilised every night.

The teams also carry out safety coordination as well as the Construction Design and Management (CDM) mission, linked to British legislation.

To work on these sites, Colas Rail will call on locally recruited employees, specifically trained and authorised to work for Eurotunnel.

The amount of this second contract is 7.9 million euros.

“These contracts are demanding for our teams since they have to work on a 24/7 basis, with an obligation to intervene within two hours in the event of a problem, explains Grégory Petit, manager of the Voie ITE Nord Colas Rail. We are proud that our client Eurotunnel has renewed its confidence in us, thus valuing the investment and the quality of the work of our teams for six years. »

Colas Rail carried out its first work in the Channel Tunnel rail tunnels in 2009, subsequently signing an initial five-year maintenance contract in November 2014. In total, these various contracts represent an average of more than 480 interventions per year for Colas Rail teams.

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