DEME develops largest container terminal
In the Asian city state of Singapore, the Antwerp dredging group DEME is participating in the development of the largest container terminal worldwide. De Singapore government intends to create more living space by moving the entire container port from the city centre to the southwest of the isle within a timeframe of 30 years. “This is a flagship project for DEME in view of its scale and its immense technical challenges”, as states DEME’s Area Director Asia Philip Hermans. The project must be completed by 2020.
Last year, a consortium around DEME and the Korean company Daelim obtained the aforementioned TTP1 development project for the second phase of a four ‘fingers’ island. The consortium can dredge 7 million cubic metres and reclaim 300 hectares of land, a project carrying a price tag of 1.6 billion euros. DEME has to meet various technical challenges as neighbouring countries Malaysia and Indonesia refuse to export sand to Singapore. Consequently, sand from Myanmar or Cambodia has to be transported to Singapore. In order to limit those costs and cut down on sand, DEME will recycle the dredged clay.
Moreover, the Belgian company has nearly finished reclaiming land on the isle of Jurong that will be harbouring the third largest petrochemical cluster in the world. Shortly also the development of the third finger of the future container port will be outsourced. By the end of this year, DEME will know whether it has been selected to carry out that project as well.
Since its merger with the new Dimco division (Deme Infrastructure Marine Contractors), the DEME company (Dredging, Environmental & Marine Engineering) has grown into one main maritime group that is better equipped to complete projects. Dimco is responsible for the complex hydraulic construction projects. In 2015, DEME has been named as company of the year by EY Belgium, among others responsible for the Oosterweel link in Antwerp and for the new Terneuzen lock (Belgium).