The morning of March 20 witnessed the Launching Ceremony for CREG’s EPB TBM CREC 346 to bore the Hohhot Metro Line 1.

The Φ6.43 machine operated by project contractor China Railway No.10 Engineering Group Co., LTD is to start from Hugang East Road to Kongjiaying Station along Xinhua Avenue. The one-way tunnel is expected to be completed in July 2017. During its drive, the TBM will cross two lines of railway and aquifer sections with high water pressure. Local citizens call the machine “Caoyuan Xiongying Hao” (Eagle of the Prairie), wishing it “Forge its way ahead like the eagle”. 

The Hohhot Metro Line 1 (23.2km) is the first metro in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region. It is also an infrastructure featuring the largest volume of investment (CNY 17.756 billion) and longest project duration.