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Ports

Around 80% of world trade is carried by the international shipping industry. Seaborne trade is expected to continue to grow. At the same time container ships, bulk carriers, tankers and cruise vessels get larger. For these reasons ports have to increase their draft and handling capacity and improve efficiency.

Boskalis designs and develops new ports, or deepens, expands and maintains existing ports for governments and port operators around the world. We utilize our wealth of experience applying dredging and earthmoving expertise, at times combined with civil engineering. In addition, Boskalis also transports port-related equipment such as container cranes. Through SMIT and its joint ventures, we are a global leader in providing day-to-day in-port services such as harbor towage and salvage.

What sets us apart

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Our ability to manage complexity

We have a proven track record delivering a wide variety of demanding projects from (pre-)feasibility and design through to construction.

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Unique range of integrated maritime services

Through optimal deployment of our unique range of expertise, vessels and activities, we realize complex infrastructure projects and provide in-port services around the world.

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Our commitment to safety and sustainability

Both our progressive safety program and our environmental expertise are held in high regard.

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A team built around your needs

With 10,700 experts, Boskalis has the resources to build a global team to meet the challenges you face.

Our projects

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Rehabilitation of old breakwater, Port of Poti

The city of Poti is located at the mouth of Georgia’s largest river, the Rioni. It has been an important trade centre for centuries. Since the early 19th century, many plans have been developed for the creation of a major sea port. Construction work started in the 1850s on the main breakwater that is still protecting the port today. During its long lifetime, this structure has been maintained by frequently adding 20-60 tons of concrete cubes to the armour layer. Significant settlement of the structure over time has lowered the crest level considerably, resulting in large overtopping volumes and therefore in port-operation downtime. As a result, a rehabilitation project was executed between 2006 and 2008 by Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. to reduce the downtime caused by overtopping waves.

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Reclamation and dewatering works, Sepetiba Bay

The German steel-maker ThyssenKrupp Steel and the Brazilian mining giant Companhia Vale do Rio Doce (CVRD) teamed up to construct a EUR 3 billion steel factory at Sepetiba. This is a small town of 36,000 inhabitants near Rio de Janeiro with good access to the Atlantic Ocean. The new steel factory allowed Brazil not only to export more of its plentiful mineral resources, but also to produce semi-finished products that can be sold at higher margins. The government authorities of Brazil and Rio de Janeiro both supported the project.

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Port development, Lerwick

The Port of Lerwick is situated on the east coast of the Shetland Islands, and is operated by Lerwick Port Authority. The 2008 dredging and reclamation works were one of the largest marine projects to be carried out in Scotland in recent years and constituted the largest single investment in the port to date.

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Port construction, Vuosaari

Vuosaari Harbor is the most significant harbor project in Finnish history; in fact, it is unique even on a European scale. Both existing harbors in Helsinki’s city centre are being transferred to the eastern outskirts of the city. They are being replaced with a harbor with excellent traffic connections that can meet the increasing demand for cargo handling. The Vuosaari Harbor Center will provide a competitive and modern service package, with smooth connections between harbor operations and other logistical facilities. The harbor center will comprise the gate area, the closed harbor area and the adjacent Business Parks. The fairway to the Harbor Center will be 32 km long, at least 200 m wide, and 11 m deep. The port area comprises 150 ha, of which 90 ha will be land reclaimed from the sea.

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Salvage operation, Mighty Servant 3

In the morning of 6 December 2006 semi submersible vessel Mighty Servant 3 developed a list and sank off the port of Luanda, Angola, after the offloading of drilling platform Aleutian Key. The vessel was resting at the sea bottom in approximately 52 meters of water.

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Maintenance, Martin Garcia channel

The Rio Parana is the principal fairway for transporting the massive exports of agricultural products from the fertile plains of Argentina, Bolivia and Paraguay. Ocean going vessels sail the Parana River to the loading terminals in the Rosario region, situated 300 km upstream from the Rio de La Plata estuary. Both the Rio Parana and the Rio Uruguay flow into the Rio de la Plata. The Rio de la Plata can be described as a shallow inland-sea with natural depths between 1 and 6 m. The mouth of the Rio Parana from the Ocean is approximately 250 km. The Rio de la Plata has a width of 40 km on the upstream side near Buenos Aires and about 200 km downstream at the level of Montevideo.