The Flemish-Netherlands Scheldt Committee plans to award the construction contract for the new lock in Terneuzen to the Sassevaart consortium. The consortium is made up of BAM Infra, DEME Infra Marine Contractors, Dredging International, BAM Contractors and Algemene Aannemingen Van Laere.
A period will now follow in which the two other tenderers can make known any objections they may have. If no objections are submitted during this period the final award will be made. This is expected to be on 25 August.
The work will start at the end of this year and the first ship will sail through the New Lock in 2022. The lock will be as long and wide as the renovated locks in the Panama Canal, with dimensions of 427 x 55 x 16.44 metres. It is being constructed within the existing lock complex in Terneuzen.
The Sassevaart consortium had the ‘most economically advantageous tender’, based on price and quality. The tenders received were first evaluated for the quality criteria by a committee of experts. Only when the results of this had been established, were the prices offered examined.
The Sassevaart consortium submitted a tender for the design and construction of the New Lock for an amount of €753,346,000.
Tendering began at the end of May 2016. The scope and complexity of the work led to a decision to carry out the work under a design and construct contract with a competitive dialogue.
The competitive dialogue has been based on a descriptive document. A number of dialogue rounds were held with all the parties selected. The client discussed all the aspects of the contract. At the start of May this year, three final tenders were received and evaluated over the following weeks.
The lock complex in Terneuzen forms the access to ports located on the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal and is a crucial link in the Seine-Scheldt connection. The New Lock will provide better access and a smoother flow of traffic from the Western Scheldt to the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal and beyond.
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