Deeper fairway in Port of Gothenburg
Deeper fairway in Port of Gothenburg
Larger vessels require deeper harbours
The Port of Gothenburg is the only port in Sweden that can receive the world’s largest vessels. At present they are unable to do so fully loaded. To address this problem and ensure Swedish industry is able to meet the demands of the future, extensive deepening of the fairway is required. The project, known as Skandia Gateway, is being run jointly by the Swedish Maritime Administration and the Port of Gothenburg. An application was submitted to the Land and Environment Court in December, a design-build contractor has been appointed, and we have secured funding from our owners.
The project in practice
The area that needs to be deepened is almost five kilometres long and 13 million cubic metres of clay will need to be dredged. This will increase the maximum depth from the current 13.5 metres to 17.5 metres. In addition, the turning circle outside the Container Terminal needs to be widened. Quays and terminal areas will be reinforced, allowing two large vessels to be handled at the same time.
From vision to reality
As current conditions prevent certain vessels from visiting Sweden, work needs to begin as quickly as possible. Preparations began in 2019, the Gothenburg Port Authority will begin quay reinforcement work in 2022, and the Swedish Maritime Administration will begin dredging at the earliest in 2024. The project is scheduled for completion at the earliest during the first half of 2026.
Estimated draught when fully loaded
Here are the depths required for different load volumes. The maximum draught at the Port of Gothenburg is currently 13.5 metres. The figures are a clear indication of how crucial it is to deepen the fairway
*Calculated in TEU, i.e. 20-foot containers
- 2'–3' containers 11,5 m *
- 3’–5’ containers 12,6 m *
- 5’–10’ containers 14,2 m *
- 10’–15’ containers 15,4 m *
- 15’–20’ containers 16,0 m *
- ≥20' containers 17,3 m *
