The expansion and reorganization of the northern container terminal at the port of Leixões could cost up to 216.6 million euros, according to documents from the public consultation that begins on Friday and ends in February.
“According to the alternative geometry/layout of the embankment (Alternative A or Alternative B) and dock solution (caissons or piles), variable costs are estimated, between approximately 201.5 million euros (Alternative A/piles) and 216.6 million euros (Alternative B/caissons)”, can be read in the documents available on the Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) portal.
According to the non-technical summary of the Environmental Impact Study (EIA) for the Expansion and Reorganization of the North Container Terminal of the Port of Leixões, in Matosinhos, district of Porto, the duration of construction is estimated at 54 months (four years and six months) and the “expected horizon for the start of the concession is 2030”, with the Administration of the Ports of Douro, Leixões and Viana do Castelo (APDL) providing for a concession with a maximum period of 75 years.
The project “aims to create the necessary conditions for receiving larger container ships, maximizing the annual handling capacity of TEUs [medida padrão de um contentor marítimo normalizado] and optimize operations at the North Container Terminal of the Port of Leixões”.
To this end, its expansion includes “the expansion of the embankment and the pier and the inclusion of a railway terminal”, with capacity for 750 meter long trains, as well as the “reconstruction/repositioning of station B of the oil terminal which will be deactivated with the expansion of the current North Container Terminal”.
The cost estimate excludes station B, “whose construction is estimated to cost between 15 and 20 million euros”, as well as “costs directly linked to the operation of the terminal, such as buildings and cargo handling equipment or equipment supplying electricity to ships”.
With the execution of the project, the northern terminal “will be able to immediately receive ships measuring around 300 meters in length, 40 meters in width and 13.5 meters in draft, that is, with a capacity of 5,000 TEUs, guaranteeing an annual movement on the embankment of at least one million TEUs (currently 250,000 TEUs)”.
“The expansion of the embankment will have a total overlap with Marina Porto Atlântico and stations B and C of the oil terminal at the port of Leixões, deactivating them, providing for the reconstruction/repositioning of station B and the redesign of the road access to the jetty and the pipe network for the transport of fuels/petrochemicals to the new station B, but does not include the construction of a new marina or station C.
According to the study, “the relocation of the marina is being studied, with APDL envisaging that it will occupy the basin next to the cruise terminal, where nautical infrastructure already exists”, with the port administration also underway “a recreational nautical study to assess the need to complement this area with another in the vicinity of the port of Leixões, namely on the right bank of the Douro river, in the Cais do Ouro area”, and, “if necessary, the Afurada marina may accommodate some vessels”.
The Government plans to invest 931 million euros (ME) in the port of Leixões over the next 10 years, with the construction of a new container terminal on the north jetty, according to the national strategy Ports 5+.
According to the strategy, of the 931 million euros of investment planned until 2035, 219 million will come from the port authority or community funds, and 712 million from private companies, predicting a capacity increase of 10 million tons.
The Ports 5+ strategy, to promote the growth of the port sector in 10 years, foresees the investment of four billion euros, of which 75% private, and the launch of 15 new concessions, the Government announced on July 30th.