ME and Ophelia

580 TONNES MONSTER MACHINE
Sold on eBay

Online at eBay, there were 65 bids for a huge boring machine used to build the Channel Tunnel that links the south of England and France. Item description of the Eurotunnel TBM (Tunnel Boring Machine):

"This 580 tonnes monster machine is a prized relic from the greatest construction achievement of the 20th century, the Channel Tunnel.   With 227 double-headed rock picks tipped with tungsten carbide and a top revolving speed of 2.38 rev/min, this TBM removed a half million cubic meters of chalk and soil in creating the Eurotunnel route."

Today, it sold for GBP 39,999. The money is being donated to three charities. Buyer needs to collect from the Eurotunnel terminal in Folkestone. Wonder who bought it - how much it will cost to pick up - where they will be going with it - and what they are going to do with it. Must have cost a lot more to build. What a bargain. Hope it does not end up being melted down as scrap. It'd make an interesting museum piece.