Expansion works in the Port of Gijón have involved the execution of a new shelter dyke which, starting at Cabo Torres and 3,834 meters ( m) long and three alignments with different structure types, making up a 140 hectare ( ha) platform of sheltered water. This has required doubling the former installations in the Port of Gijón.

It also contemplates execution of a wharf to the north of the platform, 1,250 m long, with depth ranging between 23 and 27 m, more than 400 m wide, enabling the simultaneous berthing of three bulk carriers of 230,000 TPM, 20 m deep, with a total emerging surface area of 145 ha of land into the sea.

The total works involve:

• 3,797 m shelter dyke consisting of 1,433 m (Tower sloping dyke), 1,566 m (North vertical dyke) and a 798 m harbor wall
• 1,365 m wharf, 23 m deep
• 1,650 m inside slopes in a closed esplanade

Extension of the Port of Gijón is a huge technological challenge in terms of design and execution, due to the following conditioning factors:

• Technical complexity of the works
• Huge depth, occasionally greater than 33 m
• Rainy weather and harsh maritime conditions
• Need for uninterrupted work, 24 hours a day, to execute some reinforced concrete components (boxes, blocks, etc.)

More information

• Ampliacion Gijon