During the 2018 International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) Awards in Berlin from Sept 9 to 11, Guiyang-Weng'an Expressway in Guizhou won the FIDIC Award for Special Merit.

The expressway connects Guiyang city to Weng'an county, Qiannan Bouyei and Miao autonomous prefecture, has a length of 71 kilometers and plays an important part in the national expressway network.

The expressway, which opened to traffic in 2015, passes through Weng'an on its way to Central China's Hunan province, South China's Guangdong province and Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, and Guiyang, Chengdu and Chongqing Municipality in Southwest China.

Qingshui River Bridge over the Qingshui River Gorge is part of the Guiyang-Weng'an expressway and the second highest bridge in the world. [Photo/xinhuanet.com]

The complex geological conditions and the 450 meter-deep Qingshui River Gorge along the expressway make construction extremely difficult. Guizhou China Communication Construction Company (CCCC) Guiweng Highway Company used an environmentally friendly design philosophy and innovative technology, which guaranteed the sustainable development of the area.

Located in Switzerland, FIDIC promotes international engineering standards and is a major engineering consulting industry. The FIDIC Award for Special Merit is honored as the Nobel Prize in the engineering consulting industry and is awarded to only two projects each year.

The award has strict criteria regarding innovative technologies, operation standards and sustainable development.

In 2018, a total of 22 projects from China, America, Australia, Canada, South Korea, Japan and other countries were considered for the award, all representing the highest level of engineering in the world.