- South African giant Shaft Sinkers achieves wonders
GANGTOK: In an engineering marvel at ongoing Teesta-III hydro electric project, Shaft Sinking method has been deployed to save as much as 15 months in the Project schedule.
The technique is being executed by Shaft Sinkers of South Africa and this is their first such assignmentin India. 
Official sources say the results are “very much encouraging”. Shaft Sinking method was adopted when all other traditional methods are found either unsuitable or unfeasible.
This method usually applied in Mines. With Teesta-III Shaft Sinkers diversified into hydro-electric schemes.
Teesta Urja is environmental friendly and has got the most dependable hydrology as the major project component is underground, having minimum impact on environment.
On winning the Sikkim contract, Shaft Sinkers MD, Rob Schroder said the challenges involved in this project were immense: “For one, the road is a single narrow track in the Himalayas and it will take more than 14 hours to move equipment 15 kilometres to the site and the laydown area is extremely narrow. It is similar to the conditions we worked in previously at a job in Laos.
Shaft Sinkers has been sinking shafts through every type of rock strata for more than 47 years and has achieved worldwide acclaim helping cement South Africa’s reputation as one of the world’s most advanced countries in shaft sinking and mining technology.Projects include not only vertical shaft sinking but also a variety of excavations for underground winders, pump chambers, rock silos, loading stations, settlers and dams. The company is also involved in hydro-electric schemes, road and railway tunnels and other major civil engineering projects.
Shaft Sinkers has been active internationally in Lesotho, Zambia, the DRC, Namibia, Tanzania, Botswana, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Mali, Zimbabwe Swaziland, Israel, Ireland, England, France, Switzerland, Laos, Indonesia, Tasmania, Chile, Argentina, and Brazil.
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