The giant drill which has been used to drill afflux tunnels at Kárahnjúkar dam, in Iceland’s eastern highlands, was turned off yesterday after it broke through the last hindrance in Jökulsárgöng tunnel.
Iceland Review
One year has passed since the drilling of that tunnel began, a 13-kilometer side tunnel which connects Jökulsá á Fljótsdal glacial river with the main tunnel from Hálslón dam and Jökulsá á Dal glacial river, Fréttabladid reports.
According to spokesman of Kárahnjúkar dam Sigurdur Arnalds, the drill had penetrated the rock on exactly the right spot at 12 noon. Drilling director Li Er Bao and his crew then celebrated the completion of their project.
Arnalds estimates that water will flow through the tunnel in mid-summer. Kárahnjúkar dam provides electricity for the Alcoa aluminum smelter in Reydarfjördur, which began full operations for the first time yesterday.