Jan De Nul UK Ltd. (JDN), Portland Harbor Authority Limited (PHAL) and Portland Port Limited Ltd (PPL) will work together to bid for a major phase of the Navitus Bay wind farm project.
The Memorandum of Understanding provides JDN with exclusive use of Portland Harbor if it secures the contract to construct the foundations of the Navitus Bay wind farm’s turbines. JDN is one of two shortlisted bidders for the Navitus Bay contract.
If successful, JDN would be responsible for providing the foundations for the Navitus Bay wind farm’s turbines, basing itself in Portland Harbor throughout the construction and installation portion of the works.
JDN is bidding to supply a concrete gravity-based foundation to the wind park, which would be constructed at the Port, necessitating substantial investment in new port facilities.
Redevelopment of the port’s main pier would be the initial focus and JDN would design, develop and construct approximately 8 hectares of new quay wall in Portland Harbor, described by the team as the ‘New Coaling Pier’.
The proposals would also see an extension to existing facilities in order to provide a total of 330m deep water berthing capacity, a feature crucial for the large vessels required to berth. The construction for these elements are anticipated to take place in 2016 and 2017.
It is estimated that berth construction alone would create 270 jobs in the port and a further 250 in the local supply chain. Plans for the future extend far beyond the Navitus Bay project, to ensure that the majority of the new jobs would be sustainable over the long term.
If the bid is successful, local and regional businesses stand to benefit from UK-spend exceeding £150m during the development and construction phases of the port extension project, followed by significant spend during the construction of the foundations.
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