Russia Plans World's Longest Tunnel, a Link to Alaska

 

By Yuriy Humber and Bradley Cook

 

April 18 (Bloomberg) -- Russia plans to build the world's longest tunnel, a transport and pipeline link under the Bering Strait to Alaska, as part of a $65 billion project to supply the U.S. with oil, natural gas and electricity from Siberia. The project, which Russia is coordinating with the U.S. and Canada, would take 10 to 15 years to complete, Viktor Razbegin, deputy head of industrial research at the Russian Economy Ministry, told reporters in Moscow today. State organizations and private companies in partnership would build and control the route, known as TKM-World Link, he said.

 

For more information, click below link.

To contact the reporters on this story: Yuriy Humber in Moscow at [email protected] ; Bradley Cook in Moscow at [email protected] .

Last Updated: April 18, 2007 16:38 EDT

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20670001&refer=home&sid=a0bsMii8oKXw

The Bering Strait tunnel will cost $10 billion to $12 billion, and the rest of the investment will be spent on the entire transport corridor, the plan estimates.

 

if the brent spence bridge is going to be 3 billion, that seems like a low estimate.

 

 

^That's what I was thinking...

OK....beyond the tunnel, there are no vehicular roads that run from say Fairbanks (where it could link to the Alaska Hwy.) to the Bering Strait. I'm not sure about rail, I think there is rail from Fairbanks to Nome. (I'm assuming the tunnel will go through Wrangel Island). But that's not even the biggest problem....there is practically no road or even rail infrastructure in far Eastern Siberia. To connect it to the Trans-Siberian Railroad would be a daunting venture at best. Far Eastern Siberia isn't flat...there are mountain ranges galore out there. As for highways on the Russian side, I'm assuming the Russians aren't going build a 2000+-mile gravel highway to Vladivostok or Yakstuk. God forbid you run out of gas or a train stalls in the winter as well, Eastern Siberia is the coldest region in the world outside of the poles. I gotta believe the extra costs are going to cost almost a much as the actual tunnel itself. This sounds more ridiculous than that phallic symbol they plan to raise in Chicago.

But think about how much easier it will be for all of those alaskans to commute to thier jobs in russia!

They don't have many roads up there because they're impassable for much of the year due to snow, while diesel fuel turns to gelatin in the cold. The Trans-Siberian Railroad uses electrically powered locomotives, and uses rescue trains when there is a malfunction or accident.

 

They will have to use eletricity as their source of motive power for those reasons, and because of the length of the proposed tunnel.

 

All that being said, unless there is a concern of water ports being closed due to ice, I question whether it would make more sense to develop rail links from Siberia to more southern water ports in Russia or China. Waterborne shipping is the lowest-cost mode of cargo transport. But if that isn't feasible, then I can see why the rail tunnel would make economic sense.

They don't have many roads up there because they're impassable for much of the year due to snow, while diesel fuel turns to gelatin in the cold. The Trans-Siberian Railroad uses electrically powered locomotives, and uses rescue trains when there is a malfunction or accident.

 

They will have to use eletricity as their source of motive power for those reasons, and because of the length of the proposed tunnel.

 

All that being said, unless there is a concern of water ports being closed due to ice, I question whether it would make more sense to develop rail links from Siberia to more southern water ports in Russia or China. Waterborne shipping is the lowest-cost mode of cargo transport. But if that isn't feasible, then I can see why the rail tunnel would make economic sense.

 

Shipping is already is feasable in places like Magadan for six months out of the year, and ports are ice-free year round in Petrol and Sahlinisk, which is why this tunnel and the destruction of the virgin land of Far East Siberia it will bring makes zero economic sense.

I thought Vladivostok's port gets closed by ice?

Maybe they are hoping for a Seward's Folly type reoccurance

I thought Vladivostok's port gets closed by ice?

 

No, most of the Russian Pacific ports get some form of ice along their shores, but they operate all year long. Only Magadan is impassable because the Sea of Oshtosk is shallow.....it operates from May to December.

Is Haliburton involved in this at all? If so, the project is probably a go ;)

Yay for russian tunnels  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkXJ4spHgO0

Boo for Russian drivers (and bad music). I can't believe the driver of that articulated bus kept driving!! Yay for the tunnels being able to hold up against those nutjobs.

Boo for Russian drivers (and bad music). I can't believe the driver of that articulated bus kept driving!! Yay for the tunnels being able to hold up against those nutjobs.

 

what you are not a fan of 'avalon' by juliet? she's cool, but regardless hoo boy better get used to it. even tho she is from the states, this kind of euro-clubby style is about the only kind of pop music you will hear in europe. for example, just about every store i walked into in london was playing mika or stuff like this.

 

btw check out where the video for the song is set....in a tunnel!!! they should just make the crash video the real one instead. :laugh:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RV1DHx1YJK4

 

When I was there in 2005 you couldn't get away from this piece of crap:

 

 

Sure Europe might have better mass transit but their music is awful!   

JMeck, I have heard that before too.........pure awfulness.. "Scooter" as cheezy is he is the most interesting in europe http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33Bb7zjQhw8

But actually what was pretty funny about the trip was how popular American gangster rap was...in Spain we walked into a mild-mannered restaurant and Eminem's "Ass Like That" was playing totally uncensored at a medium-high volume.  What's really funny about that particular song is that Eminem is rapping in a vaguely Indian or Pakistani accent, certainly an "immigrant" accent, and then people in other countries just play the dumb thing.  They can translate the words directly but they can't understand the insinuation of that accent or really what the heck the song's about.  They probably don't come close to understanding Triumph the Insult Comic either.

I stopped listening to virtually all new music by about 1995 (not joking). There are some exceptions, of course. I know who Eminem is, but I've never heard any of their stuff. The other names mean nothing to me.

 

So how about that proposed Russian tunnel?!?!