Danish engineering firm Cowi and architects Dissing+Weitling have teamed up to win a contract for a massive bridge project in China.
The Danish duo, which also teamed up for the Great Belt Connection in Denmark, will build a huge coast-to-coast connection that will link the two cities of Shenzhen and Zhongshan in the Guandong province in southern China.
“Many months of hard work have paid off, and we are obviously very proud to be the winner,” said Lars Hauge, the regional vice president for COWI. “I simply knew from the first glance that I was looking at an extraordinary project.”
“We have had an excellent teamwork with the architect Dissing+Weitling Architecture, with whom we have a long-standing and excellent working relationship. Together we have managed to make a unique link that is both visionary and structurally daring.”
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A lift to Guangdong
The connection, dubbed the ShenZhong Link, will be 24 km long, include two suspension bridges, the world’s widest immersed road tunnel and cost around 36 billion kroner.
The project also includes a multi-purpose island with environmental and sustainable solutions which will be able to host a 15,000 sqm conference, office and restaurant facilities, and a promenade.
Experts contend that the connection will provide a significant upgrade to the infrastructure in Guangdong, one of China’s most affluent provinces.
But the project could prove to be a challenging task to complete due to the high wind speeds the area experiences in autumn combined with a foundation that rests on a river delta consisting of sand and loose soil.
