The reinforcement of the quay wall as part of the “Skandia Gateway“ project has been completed on schedule; dredging work is now set to begin. Larger container ships should soon be able to call at the Port of Gothenburg.
The “Skandia Gateway“ project – the major modernisation of the Port of Gothenburg – is entering its next phase: after more than two years, work to reinforce the south quay at the container terminal has been completed. According to the port authority, the project remained within both the time and budget constraints. This week, Boskalis will begin blasting and dredging work in the immediate vicinity of the quay wall.
Since spring 2024, NCC has been carrying out extensive reinforcement work on the westernmost 700 metres of the container terminal’s south quay. The quay wall reinforcement is a key component of ‘Skandia Gateway’ and an essential prerequisite for deepening the area directly in front of the quay wall; this will enable larger container ships with greater draught to call at the port from the turn of the year 2028/2029.
“This is an important milestone for ‘Skandia Gateway’. We have successfully completed a major and technically challenging quay wall project,” said Elin Dörrheide, project manager for the quay wall reinforcement. “This success is the result of excellent cooperation between all those involved. Above all, it means that we can now proceed with the next phase of the project as planned.”
The work now to follow will initially cover the first 50-metre-wide strip of water along the westernmost 700 metres of the South Quay quay wall. In the process, Boskalis will remove more than 200,000 m3 of soft dredged material and around 30,000 m3 of rock. The area directly in front of the quay wall will be designed to accommodate vessels with a maximum draught of 17.5 m. Completion of the works is scheduled for March 2027.
Next step on the horizon
In parallel, the Swedish Maritime Administration (Sjöfartsverket) is putting out to tender the far more extensive blasting and dredging works in the navigation channel and turning basin, as well as the adaptation of the navigational aids. The authority plans to sign the contract for this phase of the project in early 2027.
The ‘Skandia Gateway’ project is designed to accommodate container ships up to 430 m in length and 65 m in width. These vessels will be 30 metres longer and 5 metres wider, and will have a draught up to 4 metres greater than the vessels currently calling at the container terminal. Work on the fairway and the turning basin is scheduled to begin in August 2027. The Port of Gothenburg and the Swedish Maritime Administration share the common goal of bringing the new fairway and quay wall into operation before the end of 2028.
“This timetable is of strategic importance to Swedish industry,” the port authority stated. “Several major European container ports are reaching their limits in terms of both water depth and available capacity. ‘Skandia Gateway’ will create better conditions for the world’s largest container ships to call at Gothenburg, thereby enabling more direct trade between Sweden and global markets.
“Skandia Gateway is an investment for the coming decades,” said Dörrheide. “The fact that we are completing an important phase on schedule and within budget, whilst at the same time pushing ahead with the next one, shows that the project is making great progress. Once Skandia Gateway is completed, we will further strengthen our capacity and competitiveness and create even better conditions for Swedish industry to reach global markets.”
