A joint venture (JV) between Laing O'Rourke and Ferrovial Agroman is to start work on the £1.2 billion Northern Line Extension.

The FLO JV will begin building two new 3.2km tunnels for the scheme this March. Completion is set for 2020.

The structures will extend the Northern line between Kennington and Battersea to enable the regeneration of the Vauxhall, Nine Elms and Battersea areas.

Two 650-tonne tunnel boring machines, named Helen and Amy, will tunnel at depths of 26 metres for six months, excavating more than 300,000 tonnes of earth. The machines will build the 5.2 metre diameter east and westbound tunnels, with nearly 20,000 pre-cast concrete segments being built behind them.


In addition, two new stations will be created; one at the heart of the Battersea Power Station redevelopment and another at Nine Elms to the east. Overall, the project will help generate economic growth by supporting around 25,000 new jobs and over 20,000 new homes.

Announcing the date for the start of tunnelling, London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: "It's great news that we are going to begin tunnelling for the Northern Line Extension.  Extending the line to Nine Elms and Battersea is going to be a real boost to south London, with the improved transport link helping to provide thousands of homes and jobs for Londoners."

(LM/MH)