Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. (Boskalis) has been awarded a contract by Açu Petróleo S.A. (joint venture company of Prumo Logística S.A. and Oiltanking Gmbh) for the expansion of the Porto do Açu Oil Transhipment Terminal in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. The contract has a total value of approximately EUR 120 million.
The expansion comprises the deepening, widening and extension of the access channel and turning basin. In total, approximately 32 million cubic meters of sand, silt and clay will be dredged. The activities will commence immediately and are expected to be completed late 2017. For this project one jumbo and two large trailing suction hopper dredgers will be deployed.
Currently, the terminal's access channel has a depth of 20.5 meters suitable to receive Suezmax type vessels. By the end of 2017 the depth will be increased to up to 24.5 meters, so the terminal will be able to receive Very Large Crude Carriers.
Between 2011 and 2015 Boskalis was responsible for the development of a large part of Açu Port, which included the construction of two access channels, a turning basin, an inner channel and mooring berths as well as the 2.4 kilometer of revetments for the inner harbor's protection.
Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. is a leading global services provider operating in the dredging, maritime infrastructure and maritime services sectors. The company provides creative and innovative all-round solutions to infrastructural challenges in the maritime, coastal and delta regions of the world with services including the construction and maintenance of ports and waterways, land reclamation, coastal defense and riverbank protection. In addition, Boskalis offers a wide variety of marine services and contracting for the oil and gas sector and offshore wind industry as well as salvage solutions (SMIT Salvage). Furthermore, Boskalis has a number of strategic partnerships in harbour towage and terminal services (KOTUG SMIT Towage, Keppel Smit Towage, Saam Smit Towage and Smit Lamnalco). With a versatile fleet of 1,000 units Boskalis operates in around 75 countries across six continents. Boskalis has over 8,200 employees, excluding its share in partnerships.