The tunnel through Vaðlaheiði connecting Akureyri and Húsavík in Northeast Iceland is half-finished. The tunnel was originally supposed to open in December 2016 but the opening has now been postponed until spring 2017.
The reason for the delay is a hot water aquifer. According to Morgunblaðið’s sources, contractor Ósafl made a mistake in not drilling a test hole which could have provided evidence of the aquifer and prevented the excessive flow of hot water.
RÚV reports that this is not the first time that the contractor avoided drilling a test hole but that usually it hadn’t caused a problem because the rock was relatively dry.
The contractor and the buyer are allegedly in disagreement over whether the contractor made a mistake and the dispute is currently being handled by a conciliation board with representatives of both parties and one independent party.
