The contract value is approximately EUR 90 million and was acquired together with Royal Boskalis Westminster N.V. (Boskalis). Jan De Nul Group’s share of the total contract is approximately EUR 45 million.

The project scope includes capital dredging and a five year maintenance contract to maintain the depth. The capital dredging work will be performed in 2012 and 5.5 million cubic meters firm soil will be removed with a large seagoing cutter suction dredger. This firm soil consists mainly of shale. The maintenance contract requires the annual removal of approximately 3.8 million cubic meters of silt, over a period of five years and will be carried out with a trailing suction hopper dredger and a water injection dredger.

Jan De Nul Group

Jan De Nul Group is especially well known for its dredging activities worldwide. Thanks to its skilled employees, technical expertise and ultramodern fleet, Jan De Nul Group ranks at the top of the international dredging industry, as well as being one of the largest civil engineering and environmental contractors.

All key activities, from design to execution, are carried out by its own engineers and equipment. The supporting services of the dredging, civil and environmental division enable Jan De Nul Group to perform large-scale projects to its clients’ satisfaction, whether this concerns a Palm Island in Dubai, an oil sludge treatment plant in Romania or the construction of the new locks in the Panama Canal.

The South Carolina House of Representatives’ Ways and Means Committee established the Harbor Deepening Reserve Fund and included $180 million in non-recurring funds to be used for deepening the state’s harbors, including the Charleston Post 45 Harbor Deepening Project.

“We are most appreciative to the members of House Ways and Means for their strong commitment to our state’s ports and the Charleston’s Harbor Deepening Project,” Bill Stern, chairman of the South Carolina Ports Authority, said. “By including $180 million for construction at this time, South Carolina shows that it stands firmly behind this project and is ready to usher it through to completion.”

The fund would be used to cover the state’s share of construction costs following the completion of the project’s feasibility study. The total deepening project cost is estimated at $300 million and 60 percent, or $180 million, would be funded by the state. Any expenditures from the fund would require approval by the South Carolina General Assembly through a joint resolution.

Charleston’s Harbor Deepening Project has built considerable momentum in recent weeks. Last week, $3.5 million toward the project’s feasibility study was included in the President’s Budget for fiscal year 2013. That allocation, along with the funds already included in the Corps’ Work Plan, means that the federal share of the feasibility study is more than halfway funded.

Already the deepest harbor in the region, Charleston’s deepening project would open the port to the biggest vessels 24 hours a day, under any tidal condition. The Corps stated in its Reconnaissance Study in 2010 that Charleston is likely “the cheapest South Atlantic harbor to deepen to 50 feet.”

“Each additional foot of depth in our harbor offers tremendous opportunities for businesses – in South Carolina and throughout the region – to compete in a rapidly expanding global marketplace,” Stern said. “We believe this project offers the best value for a true post-Panamax harbor in the entire Southeast region, and we commend the Ways and Means Committee for recognizing the critical need for a deepened shipping channel in Charleston.”

The full House of Representatives will take up the budget in early March.  

One reason for this may have been the fact that DB is planning to sell RREEF. ASX-listed Asciano, the port’s operator, also acquired a 20 per cent interest in the asset from Australian Infrastructure Fund.

Port of Geelong is the largest regional port in Victoria and handles a broad range of bulk commodities including woodchips, crude oil and petroleum, steel, fertiliser, chemicals and alumina.

RREEF Infrastructure’s acquisition was made on behalf of one its Australian institutional clients, is expected to be completed by 29 February and isn’t conditional.

RREEF Infrastructure portfolio manager and head of asset management Richard Hedley said the group initially invested in Port of Geelong in 1996 when it was privatised by the Victorian government and it has delivered strong cash distributions and capital growth to clients to
date.

Australian Infrastructure Fund will receive $24.9 million from its sale of its 35 per cent stake in Port of Geelong, plus a distribution of net income and franking credits generated from the asset from July
1 to the expected date of sale completion, February 29.

The group purchased its stake in the asset in September 2000 for $8.3m and has generated an annual total average return since inception of 23 per cent.

Australian Infrastructure Fund chief executive officer Jeff Pollock said the stake sale reiterates the fund’s commitment to focusing its on key airport assets, which will comprise 96 per cent of its
portfolio once the Port of Geelong sale has completed.

“We remain committed to actively pursuing all opportunities to maximise shareholder value,” Mr Pollock said, adding the proceeds from divestment will be retained to provide funding flexibility.

  “We’ve seen meaningful job growth over the last two years, but getting more Americans back to work means helping more American businesses sell their products and services in markets abroad,” Blank said. “The Port of Savannah is an important part of that bi-partisan priority. I enjoyed learning about the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project firsthand. Building a state-of-the-art, modern port is key to creating an economy that’s built to last.”

“I appreciate the Deputy Secretary’s willingness to come to Savannah to learn about the need to prepare this port, and all our nation’s ports, for the future of global commerce,” Senator Isakson said. “As Deputy Secretary Blank saw, the Port of Savannah is an export-dominant port and contributes greatly to the Department of Commerce’s National Export Initiative, which I support. The Georgia congressional delegation remains committed to seeing this critical project through to completion, because it will have a huge impact on both the state and national economies.”

“Deepening the harbor at the Port of Savannah is in line with the nation’s priorities, including our focus on increasing American export capabilities,” Chambliss said. “Continued federal support for the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project is crucial to achieving the goal of doubling U.S. exports.”

Blank’s visit comes on the heels of recent announcements of $5.8 million in new federal funding that will allow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to prepare for the construction phase of the harbor deepening, which is planned to begin in FY 2013. The additional money comes in part from a fund created by Congress, and in part from a $2.8 million line item in the president’s FY2013 budget proposal.

“The $180 million in state funds that have either been committed or budgeted to deepen the Savannah harbor speaks plainly to Georgia’s commitment to this project,” said Governor Nathan Deal. “Today’s visit is another indication of the emphasis federal officials place on our ports. Senators Isakson and Chambliss and Congressman Jack Kingston have played a pivotal role in ensuring this project is approved, and the necessary funds are in place to begin construction in the coming months.”

GPA Board Chairman Alec Poitevint echoed the governor’s comments about the importance of federal support. “The single most critical factor for the Port of Savannah’s future success, and its ability to move American-made goods to the international marketplace, is the completion of the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project,” Poitevint said. “The work to deepen the Savannah Harbor up to 48 feet is precisely the type of effort that will bring comprehensive economic recovery to the United States.”

Acting Deputy Secretary Blank’s visit is the latest in a string of federal appearances at the Port of Savannah. In November, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood lent his support to the project during a meeting with Governor Deal and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.

After the briefing, both senators and the deputy secretary toured the facility. As the fourth busiest container port in the country, the Port of Savannah serves approximately 21,000 companies in all 50 states, over 75 percent of which are headquartered outside of Georgia.

Previous Corps of Engineers studies revealed deepening the harbor to 48 feet will bring more than $115 million in annual economic benefits to the United States – mainly through lower transportation costs. The Corps’ full environmental and economic study is expected to receive a record of decision later this year, allowing the Corps to move to the construction phase of the harbor deepening in FY 2013.

The harbor project is necessary to prepare for a new class of larger container ships that are nearly three times the capacity of those currently able to transit the Panama Canal. In 2014, the Panama Canal expansion will be completed and increase the maximum draft of vessels traveling to and from the U.S. East Coast from 39.5 feet to as much as 50 feet. While the Port of Savannah regularly handles vessels that are too large to transit the Panama Canal, these vessels cannot load to their capacity.