DP World signs contracts for Dubai port expansion
Fourth terminal at Jebel Ali will add 3.1 million TEUs by 2018
Dubai’s DP World has signed two contracts for construction work at its new Container Terminal 4 on a reclaimed island at Jebel Ali Port.
During the first phase, Dutco Balfour Beatty is developing an operational yard area with a quay length of 1,200m, DP World said in a statement.
BAM International Abu Dhabi is building a 400m bridge and adjacent causeways and the 2.2 km quay wall with an alongside depth of 18m, designed to accommodate the largest container vessels.
Meanwhile, CH2M HILL (Halcrow) will deliver the civil works on the reclaimed island north of Jebel Ali’s Terminal 2, connected to the mainland by a 3,000m causeway.
“This terminal is the big idea that will change the way ports work in the future,” said Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, DP World Group Chairman and CEO.
“We are building Terminal 4 from the ground up, which enables us to future proof it for smart container ships emerging in the future.”
The new terminal is set to add 3.1 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) by 2018, taking Jebel Ali Port’s total capacity to 22.1 million TEU. The port will be equipped with at least 110 cranes with a total quay length of around 11,000m by then.
DP World will further expand Terminal 4’s capacity to a total of 7.8 million TEU under the second phase of expansion, with an additional operational yard with a quay length of 1,000 metres, which will be built by Dutco Balfour Beatty.
“Dutco Balfour Beatty is honoured to be selected for this project. Our association with DP World goes back to 1976 when we undertook the construction of Jebel Ali Port,” said Zeyad Baker, executive director, Dutco Balfour Beatty.
Terminal 4 at Jebel Ali Port will be equipped with semi-automated quay cranes. The first phase will feature 13 of the world’s largest quay cranes, remotely operated from a control room off the quayside, DP World said. Some 35 Automated Rail Mounted Gantry cranes (ARMG) will operate in the yard.
When complete, the new shipping terminal will operate as a dedicated container operation, including storage of full, reefer and empty containers.
