Mauritanie – Port de minerai de fer de la SNIM à Nouadhibou

Deepening of Nouadhibou Port, Mauritania

SNIM iron ore port of Nouadhibou

Nouadhibou in Mauritania is a major iron ore export port. Mining company Société Nationale Industrielle et Minière (SNIM) wanted to open up the port for vessels with a capacity of up to 250,000 tonnes. Jan De Nul took on the task of deepening and widening the 25 km long access channel to the port terminal and turning basin.

In total, Jan De Nul Group removed approximately 21.6 million m³ sediments and transported them to a designated location at sea. To dredge and remove such considerable volumes within the 12-month deadline, suction cutter Zheng He and trailing suction hopper dredger Leiv Eiriksson will be deployed simultaneously. The Zheng He will pre-cut the sandstone, and then the Leiv Eiriksson will dredge the sediments and dump them at sea. In 2018, we received the DPC Innovation Awards for this efficient work method.