The ITA Tunnelling Awards 2025 will celebrate outstanding achievements in underground infrastructure, recognizing projects and professionals across eight categories. The celebrations begin with submission of entries in eight categories of underground activity and will culminate in announcement of the Gold, Silver and Bronze winners at a symposium and gala dinner on 1 October 2025 organised and hosted in collaboration with the Serbian Association for Tunnels and Underground Structures at its Southeastern European Tunnelling Conference in Belgrade. Entries for the project categories will have completed major civil engineering works between 1 March 2022 and 1 April 2025. Closing date for entries is 15 May 2025.
Last year, the ITA Awards were hosted by the Tunnelling Association of India (TAI) at a grand gala event in Mumbai in November 2024. This year, the judging panel from India includes Mr. Subodh Kumar Gupta of Mumbai Metro and Mr. Mangu Singh of Delhi Metro.
The eight categories for nominations are:
Major Project of the Year more than €500 million
Mega-projects of excellence that inspire future developments and underscore the invaluable role of underground space in sustainable urban development. Gold Winner 2024 : Thames Tideway CSO Supersewer, London, UK
Project of the Year between €50-€500 million
Groundbreaking projects that highlight their exceptional execution in terms of safety, technological advancement, and innovative solutions to complex challenges. Gold Winner 2024 : Brenner Base Railway – Lot H52 Hochstegen, Austria
Project of the Year up to €100 million
These are vital projects at the lower end of the budget that promote the broader benefits of essential underground infrastructure to society and the environment. Gold Winner 2023 : Mount Royal Rehabilitation for REM Project, Montreal, Canada
Renovation Project of the Year
Repurposing and maintaining existing underground infrastructure is as vital to society as new works. These projects present special complexities, often requiring renovation while underground facilities remain in service. Gold Winner 2024 : Manfreida Highway Tunnel Renovation Project, Italy
Technical Innovation of the Year
Celebrating innovations that push the boundaries of engineering in the application, processes, or technologies and enhance the underground construction industry's ability to deliver safer, more efficient, and more sustainable underground solutions. Gold Winner 2024 : Disc cutter wear sensor package and TBM monitoring system, South Korea
Product/Equipment Innovation of the Year
Advances in underground construction equipment or products that go beyond incremental improvements to demonstrate and introduce transformative capabilities in efficiency, safety, and performance of underground construction activities. Gold Winner 2024 : Ultra-small Turning Radius Hard Rock TBM, China
Elevated Thinking Underground: Shaping the Future
Going beyond engineering to recognise the ingenuit, and visionary leadership that drives the successful realization of underground solutions that will shape the future and provide profound and transformative impacts on environments and communities. Gold Winner 2024 : Modern Underground Cemetery – When Creativity, Sustainability and Efficiency Meet Tradition, Isreal
Young Tunneller of the Year
Born on or after 1 January 1990, these exceptional young professionals have made a significant impact and shown leadership on technically complex projects or in pioneering innovative solutions to advance industry best practices. Gold Winner 2024 : Luigi D'Angelo, Italy
