The 568-metre (1,864 ft) long tunnel was originally built in 1962 as part of the Sulitjelma Line between Finneid and Sulitjelma. The tunnel was built to shorten the overall length of the railroad by straightening the path and going through a mountain rather than curving around it. The railway line was closed and dismantled in 1972. The tunnel was rebuilt soon after when the old railway line was converted into a highway which opened in 1975.[1]