Velasco Terminal Expansion is Largest Public Port Project
There are approximately 29,200 tons of steel piling on the project and one of the biggest challenges is that the piles have extremely tight driving tolerances that will require a three-story template to ensure accurate alignment.
FREEPORT, TX—The Velasco Container Terminal expansion, which includes Berth 8, features more than 925 feet of berth extension and will accommodate post-Panamax gantry cranes. This will be the single largest project built by a public port on the Texas Gulf Coast.
McCarthy Building Companies Inc. has been awarded the expansion project beginning at year end. The new infrastructure is anticipated to be fully operational by August 2022.
“McCarthy has vast experience working along the Texas coast, building and rehabilitating ports,” said Fitz O’Donnell, vice president of operations for McCarthy. “We excel at complex projects and look forward to tackling this large and important project for Port Freeport.”
The scope of work includes demolition of existing concrete relieving platform, excavation, combi-wall bulkhead, new wharf, wharf piling, dredging, revetment, fenders, electrical and crane rail installation. McCarthy will self-perform all aspects of the project except for dredging, electrical and crane rail installation.
“The purpose of the project is continued growth of the port market and the vessel traffic coming from overseas. The project is built to receive the larger vessels that now can come through the expanded Panama Canal,” O’Donnell tells GlobeSt.com. “This project is two or three times larger than the average contract value compared to most of the public port projects. The only comparable project was the Wharf 2 project at Port Houston’s Bayport facility we completed in 2010, which was a $101 million project.”
There are approximately 29,200 tons of steel piling on this project and one of the biggest challenges is that the piles have extremely tight driving tolerances that will require a three-story template to ensure accurate alignment. In addition to the piles, 60,000 tons of revetment rock are to be placed in between the piles. The placement of the revetment rock is critical to ensure that the new piles are not damaged. Furthermore, the new berth will be constructed while maintaining access to the existing Berth 7 and close coordination is required while vessels are docked at Berth 7.
The new berth will be dredged to 51 feet, matching the depth of the Freeport Harbor Channel Improvement Project, which will handle newer, larger container vessels transiting the expanded Panama Canal and be equipped to handle approximately 1.5 million lifts per year.
Port Freeport is ranked nationally 10th in chemicals, 19th in total tonnage and 26th in containers. The Freeport Harbor Channel serves BASF, Chiquita Fresh NA, CMA CGM, Dole Fresh Fruit, The Dow Chemical Company, Freeport LNG, Hoegh Autoliners, Horizon Terminal Services, Mammoet, Phillips 66, Riviana Foods Inc., Seaway Crude Pipeline Company, Sallaum Lines, Tenaris and Vulcan Materials Company.
McCarthy has been an active builder along the Texas coast for more than 20 years. It built the Velasco Terminal Berth 7 project for Port Freeport and completed several projects for Port Houston including the Bayport Wharf II, Bayport Phase I Stage II Container Yard, Bayport Gate Complex, Bayport Port Road, Bayport Phase I Stage I RCC and Bayport Wharf I.
Speculative construction is beginning to mount, but fundamentals for the market remain favorable for continued growth throughout 2020. Increasing traffic through the port has helped to position Houston as a distribution hub, according to the Transwestern Trendlines report.