Operated by Niedersachsen Ports (NPorts), the expanded offshore wind terminal will consist of three (5 – 7) berths and 1250 m of quay wall for heavy loads, as well as a storage area of 38 ha.
As part of a consortium, which includes leading German civil marine construction companies Depenbrock and TAGU, DEME will carry out the dredging and land reclamation works, with a total volume of more than 3 million m3 expected to be reclaimed. Two trailing suction hopper dredgers, a backhoe dredger, and several barges will be deployed.
Lutz Dröge, Area Manager Germany, said: “Construction of the expanded terminal requires an innovative technical approach. The project includes the installation of combi-walls and land reclamation in a dynamic estuarine environment, meeting the complex engineering requirements tailored to a heavy load terminal and demanding geotechnical conditions.”
With a proven track record in the Port of Cuxhaven, DEME and its consortium partners previously delivered the neighbouring berths 8 (2008 – 2009) and 4 (2016 – 2018), located directly east and west of the current project site. Additionally, DEME used Cuxhaven as the base port during the construction of the Borkum Riffgrund 2 offshore wind farm.
The project will start in early 2025 and is expected to take 3.5 years. Upon completion, the terminal will play a key role in further advancing the energy transition in the North Sea region and the German government's wind energy expansion targets.