The rigs will help undertake geotechnical and environmental investigation work at the site of the $473 million Canterbury Multi-Use Arena.
The stadium project is being led the by Kōtui consortium, which is made up of local and international organisations responsible for the design and construction of the arena.
Kōtui construction director Brian Hayes said the drilling rigs will bore 60m-deep holes in a bid to better understand the ground conditions at the site.
Samples from each bore will be sent to a laboratory for testing.
"The work we’re doing will inform and support our preliminary and detailed designs for the Canterbury Multi-Use Arena," said Hayes.
"As well as drilling boreholes, the sub-contractors will complete geophysical testing, cone penetration tests, test pitting and create monitoring wells."
The stadium will be built on land bound by Madras, Barbadoes, Hereford and Tuam Sts.
Golder Associates is leading the geotechnical investigations for Kōtui.
Work will be undertaken from Monday to Friday, 7am to 6pm, and is expected to be completed by late June, depending on weather and site conditions.
Evening and night work will be required for a short period to monitor the installed equipment.
Public car parks within the site boundary will be temporarily closed for short periods while investigation work takes place. Information will be displayed at each of the car parks to notify the specific closures.
The Kōtui consortium is led by Australian-based stadium construction experts BESIX Watpac, and includes Christchurch-based construction companies, Southbase Construction and Fulton Hogan, local seismic engineering specialists Lewis Bradford, Christchurch architects Warren and Mahoney, and global stadium design experts Populous and Mott MacDonald.
The combined experience represented by Kōtui has designed and built more than 400 stadiums across the world, including the recently completed 25,000-seat Queensland Country Bank Stadium at Townsville, Australia.
Construction work on the arena is expected to start in early 2022.
