"Tunnelling problems are plaguing the $12 billion Snowy 2.0 hydropower project, with a boring machine previously bogged in soft ground now wedged in hard rock and struggling to move. The tunnel boring machine named Florence had been making slow progress in recent weeks as it cut through hard rock at the Tantangara site, one of several drilling locations in Kosciuszko National Park. The ABC understands that earlier this month, Florence was mistakenly turned too sharply from a straight line into a curve, causing part of the cutting head to become wedged. Further boring compounded the problem, with the machine making only incremental movements since.Multiple sources have told the ABC the situation is more serious than has been publicly acknowledged by Snowy Hydro and could take weeks or even months before normal drilling resumes. "Wedged the thing in good and proper" one source said, with another simply saying, "It's f****d."In a statement to the ABC, a spokesperson said "the project ceased excavation by the TBM (tunnel boring machine) on Thursday, May 16 due to rock pinching on the machine's shield. "Rejecting the notion Snowy Hydro had not been up-front about the extent of the problems, the statement noted that "[the] update on TBM operations was provided within 24 hours of the machine being stopped.""
