Van Oord gets new dredging contract in Indonesia
Van Oord has been awarded a contract for dredging and maintenance work for the western access channel to the port of Surabaya in Indonesia. The client is Indonesian port company PT Pelabuhan Indonesia III (Persero). The contract is worth over EUR 50 million. Project execution will start in May 2014 and will last 10 months, followed by a two-year maintenance period, the company said in its press release.
The project involves widening the existing channel to 150 metres and deepening it to -13 metres. A total of more than 10 million m3 silt will be removed and dumped at sea. Furthermore, one or two shipwrecks must be removed. Annual maintenance for a two-year period is part of the contract. Van Oord will be deploying a large and a medium-large trailing suction hopper dredger.
Surabaya is the capital of Eastern Java and the second largest city in Indonesia. The city lies on the northern shore of the island at the mouth of the Kalimas River and is an important port. The widening and deepening of the access channel will boost further economic development of the port. This contract is the second assignment for Van Oord in Surabaya. In November 2013, in the presence of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, a contract was signed for the construction of a business park.
The latest contract was signed during a mission led by Melanie Schultz van Haegen, the Dutch Minister of Infrastructure and the Environment. This delegation visited Jakarta and Surabaya from 30 March to 4 April, inclusive. The visit was a follow-up to the mission to Jakarta led by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte in November 2013. The aim was to intensify existing collaboration between both countries regarding water management and port development.
Van Oord has been working in the port of Surabaya since 1911. The original project involved making the port accessible to vessels with a deeper draught and constructing quay walls.
Van Oord is currently involved in several projects in Indonesia. In 2013, Van Oord started constructing a large container port in Tanjung Priok, Jakarta, which will facilitate economic growth in Indonesia. Van Oord is also involved in the construction of a reclamation island intended for the expansion of the city of Jakarta as part of the Kapuk Naga Indah development plan. In Surabaya, Van Oord is currently working on the construction of a business park, the Java Integrated Industrial Port Estate, and the expansion of the harbour for the Manyar Port Terminal. On the island of Sumatra, Van Oord is carrying out maintenance on the access channel to the port of Bengkulu.