Panama Canal Authority Receives Bids To
Dredge Atlantic Entrance
Panama - Three weeks after issuing the
notice to commence work for the new set of
locks, the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) is
steps away from awarding another major
expansion contract - the contract to dredge
the Atlantic entrance, having received bids
from firms vying for the project.
The Atlantic entrance dredging project is an
essential part of the Canal's Expansion
Programme to ensure that larger, beamier
ships can reach the new locks. This includes
dredging the canal to 15.5m below mean low
water, dredging approximately 14.8 million
cubic metres of material, and conducting the
dry excavation of 800,000m3.
The area to be dredged at the Atlantic
entrance extends approximately 13.8km and
the scope of work also includes widening the
existing Atlantic entrance channel from 198m
to a minimum of 225m,s and the north
approach channel to a minimum of 218m.
"Receiving the bids today marks another key
milestone for this important project," said
ACP Executive Vice President of Engineering
and Program Management Jorge L Quijano. "The
Atlantic entrance dredging plays a critical
role in the creation of the new lane, and we
look forward to the next step in the
process."
Continuing its rigorous contracting process,
the ACP now will conduct a careful review of
the bids. The ACP will award the contract in
the coming weeks to the lowest bidder that
complies with all the contractual
requirements.
The Atlantic entrance dredging is one of
several key expansion projects that will
help create an expanded Panama Canal. Other
major projects include the design and
construction of the new set of locks, the
largest and most important; Pacific entrance
dredging; and, four dry excavation projects
that will ultimately form a new Pacific
access channel to the new locks.
So far, the plans remain on-time and
on-budget, and the ACP expects the expansion
programme to be complete by 2014.
|
