The Kingston Harbor dredging scheme, undertaken by concessionaire Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL), is now 50% complete, according to the minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Dr Horace Chang.
Dr Chang said that the works to upgrade the capacity of the KCT’s South Terminal at Gordon Cay, with the main goal to accommodate the largest ships traversing the Panama Canal, are also underway, Jamaica Information Service (JIS) reports.
“Kingston Wharves Limited has also been aggressively upgrading its capacity, with the addition of new cranes, container-handling equipment and bulk-handling equipment. It has also moved to establish itself as a leading logistics service provider, with the construction of a new 160,000 square foot ‘total logistics’ facility approaching completion,” he said during his contribution to the 2017/18 Sectoral Debate in the House of Representatives earlier this week.
This capital development project involves deepening of the entry channel and reinforcing the quay at Port Bustamante.
As recently reported, Sodraco SAS, subsidiary of Jan De Nul Group, is part of a consortium that has been made responsible for the expansion of the Port of Kingston.
For the Kingston dredging program, Jan De Nul mobilizes 6 vessels; the cutter suction dredger Marco Polo with four accompanying split barges and the trailing suction hopper dredger Pedro Alvares Cabrál.
The work is being carried out under phase one of the Kingston Container Terminal (KCT) expansion project, which is expected to be completed by December 2018, at a cost of approximately $150 million.
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