Construction starts on Waasland canal berths

The new quay will have a projecting platform with a width of 65m to permit mooring, loading and unloading of ro/ro vessels. The project is situated on the west side of the Waasland port (the Antwerp port area on the left bank of the Scheldt), at the junction of the Verrebroek and Doel docks. The quay is of the combi-wall type, having tubular piles with sheet piles between them, with a reinforced concrete deck on top and anchored by MV piles (heavy ground anchors).

The quay will offer a depth alongside of 18m. Some 500,000m³ of sand and 300,000m³ of other spoil unsuitable for recycling in the construction industry will be dredged away to create this depth. The construction work is expected to take about 24 months, and the dredging will start once this has been completed.

The project also includes construction of a talus with water plants growing on it over a length of 50m at the East end of the Doel dock, as part of a trial project. Taking this into account, the complete work should be finished by the end of 2014.