Aberdeen Harbour bosses are toasting a “major milestone” with the final concrete caisson installed at the £350million expansion project.
The first of the 8,000 tonne structures was installed back in February 2019 and now all 22 of the giant blocks are in place, forming the quay walls of the South East Pier, North Quay and East Quay.
The caissons were made in La Coruna, Spain before being transferred to the Cromarty Firth for storage and then sent to the Aberdeen Harbour expansion project.
Each one is approximately 50 metres long and between 12 – 15 metres wide, with a depth of approximately 15 metres
Aberdeen harbour board has released footage of the project to celebrate the milestone, following the transport and installation of the blocks.
Bosses said the phased completion of the overall harbour expansion is on track for phased completion “in 2021 and into 2022”.
Project director Keith Young said: “The caissons form a key part of the Harbour structure and will give customers and port users incredible heavy lift capacity – as many as 15 tonnes per square metre. This will be crucial for a variety of complex operations associated with the industries we serve.
“Work will now continue on the top layers of the fixed quays. We have seen considerable progress on site over the spring and summer months, particularly with the South Breakwater and Crown Wall”.
The milestone comes ahead of a BBC One documentary on the project which will air next week.
“Aberdeen Harbour – Our Lives” will take a deep dive into Britain’s oldest port, its day-to-day operations and the multi-million pound expansion.
It will also feature local fishermen and their diversification efforts through tourism, including boat tours to see the local area’s dolphins
The half-hour programme, produced by Tern TV, will be broadcast at 7pm on Wednesday August 18.
Recommended for you
