Spanish contractor Dragados, a subsidiary of Spain’s Grupo ACS, has been chosen to carry out the £415m ($525m) expansion of Aberdeen harbour, in Scotland.
Intended to boost Aberdeen’s usefulness to the North Sea oil and gas sector, and to receive cruise liners, the work will include a 1.4km quay dredged to a water depth of up to 10.5m and a 125ha laydown area.
Dragados was picked as preferred bidder by Aberdeen harbour management in September, and marine licences were issued in early November for the construction and dredging operations.
Habour board chief executive Colin Parker praised Dragados’ "wealth of experience in marine construction and other transport related projects of this scale".
Dragados recently completed a breakwater at Bilbao, an expansion to Gijón in Spain and the floating dock at La Condamine in Port Monaco. Â
In Aberdeen, however, there has been some controversy over the planned scheme.
Richard Dixon, director of Friends of the Earth Scotland, told the Aberdeen Evening Express that further studies were needed to test the true condition of the seabed. He said: "This first sample, the one which caused concern, came back with alarming results."
Work is expected to begin next year.
Image The planned harbour development (Aberdeen Harbour)
