First project for Jan De Nuls largest CSD
Jan De Nuls new mega-cutter suction dredger Willem van Rubroeck, which features a total installed power of 41,346kW, has started work on its very first assignment in Mauritania.
The vessel is working for developer ARISE Mauritania in the port of capital city Nouakchott where it is deepening the access channel, the port basin and the new berth alongside the new ARISE port terminal.
Willem van Rubroeck pre-cuts the hard sea bed which in turn is removed by the trailing suction hopper dredger James Cook. These two vessels, assisted by the barges Pinta, Boussole, L’Aigle and Le Guerrier, will remove a total of 3 million m3 of hard soil.
During the summer months, Willem van Rubroeck and James Cook will briefly move to the more northerly port city of Nouadhibou to dredge rock banks in the 3 km long outer channel for mining company Societe Nationale Industrielle et Miniere (SNIM).
In September and October both vessels will return to Nouakchott to complete the works for ARISE.
Both projects are largely carried out in the open sea, where the 151.3m long vessel can withstand difficult conditions such higher waves and challenging weather. Jan De Nul’s largest cutter suction dredger has three 8,500 kW dredge pumps, 8,500 kW of cutter power and can dredge to depths of 45m.
Willem van Rubroeck was lauched in 2017 at the Uljanik shipyard in Croatia but its delivery was delayed as the yard struggled before going bankrupt. In 2020 it was taken to the Remontowa shipyard in Poland where it was completed.
By Larz Bourne
