Project

Maintenance dredging works on the river Orinoco

Location : Venezuela
Client : Instituto Nacional de Canalizationes
Contractor : Dredging International
Period : 2000 – 2001 - 2002
Value : € 15.000.000

Scope of work

Maintenance dredging

General Information

The natural Orinoco river rises in the jungle of the Amazonas region in the South of Venezuela. The Orinoco Canal is 191 miles long. The section going form “Mile 191” inland to “Mile 99” downstream is called the Orinoco Interior. The last 42 miles of the canal is called the Orinoco Exterior. The annual rainy season makes sure that each and every year some 30 million m³ if sediments have to be dredged out of the canal. This includes both silt from the delta and fine to medium-coarse sand from the jungle higher up.

Description of the works

The nature of dredging work in the Orinoco Canal is such that it concerns maintenance, which has to be carried out every year.
The traffic in the canal remains a difficult parameter to be reckoned with.
Logistics also remain quite a task, especially since during the job in Exterior the distance between the dredging vessel and the nearest harbour amounts to 182 miles. In Interior we have to maintain several sectors, the most distant of which lies 100 miles downstream. This also calls for proper logistic planning and provisioning.

In 2000 and 2001, we have dredged 4 million m³ in the Orinoco Interior and 2 million m³ in the Orinoco Exterior.

In 2002 , the Vlaanderen XVIII has again been dredging in both parts of the Orinoco Canal.

Nowadays we can say that Dredging International knows the river best.

Main Equipment

Trailing suction hopper dredger VLAANDEREN XVIII