IHI Joins Construction of the World’s Longest Suspension Bridge, Strait of Messina Bridge
“A road and railway suspension bridge with a main span of 3,300 meters connecting southern Italy and Sicily.”
IHI is pleased to announce its participation in Strait of Messina Bridge Construction Project (hereinafter referred to as “the Project”), following the signing of a contract between the Stretto di Messina—owned by the Italian government—and Eurolink, a special purpose company led by Webuild, Italy’s largest construction firm headquartered in Milan.
(Source: Webuild website)
Eurolink is composed of five companies: Webuild, a global leader in infrastructure construction including large-scale bridges in countries such as Italy and Turkey; Sacyr, a company with experience of collaborating with Webuild on large-scale infrastructure projects, headquartered in Madrid, Spain; IHI, which has extensive experience in suspension bridges both Japan and internationally; and Condotte and Itinera, which both are Italian construction companies headquartered in Rome and Tortona, Italy.
The Project involves the construction of a suspension bridge with railways and roadways spanning the Strait of Messina, connecting the Italian mainland (Calabria Region) with Sicily (Sicilian Autonomous Region), along with approach roads and railway on both sides. Construction is scheduled to begin within 2025 and is expected to take approximately seven years.
Strait of Messina Bridge will feature a main span of 3,300 meters, making it the longest suspension bridge in the world—surpassing the current record holder, the Çanakkale 1915 Bridge in Turkey (main span: 2,023 meters). The height of main towers are 399 meters, which will also be the tallest suspension bridge in the world.
Upon completion, the bridge will significantly improve the mobility of people and goods, contributing to the economic development of southern Italy. The Project also represents a key section of the European Union’s Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), which aims to enhance connectivity across Europe through integrated road, rail, air, and water transport systems.
IHI Group has a strong track record in large-scale bridge construction overseas, including the Braila Bridge in Romania—completed in 2023 in collaboration with Webuild and currently the longest suspension bridge in the country—and the Izmit Bay Crossing Bridge (Osman Gazi Bridge) in Turkey. IHI will continue to expand its global bridge construction business and contribute to the development of infrastructure around the world.
[Key Features of Strait of Messina Bridge]
Main Span: 3,300 meters
Width: 60 meters (2 railway lanes + 6 road lanes)
Tower Height: 399 meters
