ICO Terminals gets 600 metres of additional quayside – WorldCargo News

NYK’s ICO Terminals now has 600 metres of additional quayside for RoRo ships at its Southern Inlet Terminal in Zeebrugge.

NYK’s car terminal subsidiary, International Car Operators (ICO), announced that the first phase of expansion works on its Southern Inlet Terminal in Zeebrugge- the dredging and disposal of nearly 1 million m³ of sand and clay soil – has now been completed.

The dredging is being carried out as part of the further development of the Southern Canal Dock.

In April, Belgium-based DEME excavated the upper soil layer of 600 metres along the quayside as part of the project. The lower layer was dredged to a level of -8.5 mTAW, making the permitted depth at the terminal the same as that of the existing moorings. As a result, two additional RoRo ships will be able to dock, according to ICO.

A second phase of the work involves excavating excess soil at the port to level the area and prepare it for construction.

The Port of Antwerp-Bruges is using the excavated land to level other sites within the port and to prepare the lorry car park along Emmanuel De Cloedtweg.

ICO plans to build a parking tower next to this quayside. The new docking facilities will enable the delivered vehicles to travel a shorter distance to their temporary staging area on the site. ICO will equip the RoRo terminal with parking lanes and parking garages for cars, along with facilities for vehicle inspection.

Further landscaping of some 32 acres of the terminal will reduce the distance between the parking garages and the internal railway. Therefore, the project will optimise operations at the terminal and thus cut relative CO2 emissions.

“The development of the Southern Canal Dock strengthens our position as one of the most important European gateways. This is good news both internationally and locally as the dredged sand and clay soil will be used both for the further construction of the terminal itself, as well as for the lorry car park a little further down the road,” Dirk De fauw, vice chairman of the Port of Antwerp-Bruges Board of Directors, said.

“This project is a textbook example of port expansion: making smart use of existing space and infrastructure. The development of the site – and the reduction in distance to the internal railway that comes with it – provides a boost in modal shift,” Rob Smeets, COO of Port of Antwerp-Bruges, said.

“Thanks to our new quay, not only do we reduce driving distances and reduce our carbon footprint, but we also increase our capacity for ships, allowing ICO to further position itself as a major player. In addition, we increase safety by better-spreading ship traffic. This is an important step forward toward a sustainable and efficient future for us as a company and as part of the port,” Alain Guillemyn, General Director of ICO Terminals, added.

Southern Inlet Terminal has a 2,760m quay length and covers a surface area of 155 hectares. It can handle 53,000 car equivalents.

ICO Terminals handles over 2 million vehicles annually across its three terminals: Southern Inlet Terminal, Northern Inlet Terminal (in Zeebrugge), and Vrasene Terminal in Antwerp.