Flooding of first section of the newly excavated lock lanes on Pacific Side of Panama Canal

A first milestone in the construction of the new locks in the Panama Canal was reached. The Administración del Canal de Panama (ACP) flooded the first section of the newly excavated lock lanes on the Pacific Side. The excavation works close to the Centenario Bridge have been executed by Jan De Nul Group and are 4.5 months ahead of contractual schedule.

During phase 1 - dry excavation works - up to now 2.4 million m³ of previously blasted rock has been excavated in a record time.  This represents 60 % of the total volume to be excavated. The dry excavation works will continue until end January 2012. Jan De Nul Group mobilised its largest earthmoving equipment for the dry excavation, such as 21 pieces of A40 Volvo articulated dump trucks and Hitachi EX1200 Excavators.
In phase 2 - dredging works - Jan De Nul Group will start the dredging works with its large cutter suction dredger ‘Marco Polo’ and backhoe dredger ‘Il Principe’ after the flooding of this first section.The completion of the works is foreseen for March 2012.
The Pacific Entrance North Access Channel dredging project concerns the excavation of the future access channel to the new third set of locks. This contract is part of an ambitious Expansion Program of the Panama Canal Authority to enable Post-Panamax vessels to sail through the Canal by 2014.
Other activities of Jan de Nul Group in Panama include design and construction of the third set of locks, the deepening works at the Port of Cristóbal, deepening and Widening of Atlantic Entrance, and three other contracts for dredging activities along the Canal. All contracts are part of the Panama Canal Expansion Program.