Maputo-Catembe bridge: Last section of deck laid this afternoon, earlier than expected

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Maputo-Catembe bridge: Last section of deck laid this afternoon, earlier than expected

8:00 CAT | 25 Oct 2017

Notícias

The last section of deck of the bridge between Maputo and Catembe will be laid today in the afternoon, ahead of schedule by about three weeks, Mozambican daily newspaper Notícias reports.

The assembly of the 57 metal modules on the bridge’s main deck took just 22 days, compared to an initial forecast was 45 days.

The deck, which will cover a 600-metre suspension span, is estimated to weigh more than 7,000 tonnes. Each module is 12 metres wide, 26 metres long and 3 metres thick.

The deck links the towers built over the bay, in Maputo and Catembe, which are 135 and 137 metres tall, respectively.

The metal cables that support the modules weigh about 2,000 tonnes each, and are over 1 kilometre long.

The company responsible for the work has given assurances that nothing will compromise the completion of the works in December, as scheduled in the initial phase of the project.

The bridge will be 3 kilometres long and its two access viaducts will be 2.3 kilometres long.

Construction of the bridge, by the China Road and Bridge Corporation (CBRC), will cost US$725 million and was funded by the Export Import Bank of China (ExIm).