BergerWorld: 3rd Quarter 2007

Since it first opened nearly 100 years ago, the 53-mile Panama Canal, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, enjoys great success, serving as a key conduit for international shipping in a world transporting more cargo now than ever before. Each year, more than 14,000 ships, carrying more than 200 million tons of cargo, pass through the canal.

Manzanillo International Terminal

Manzanillo International Terminal (MIT) commenced operations on April 16, 1995, near the Atlantic Ocean's Panama Canal opening, immediately adjacent to the Colón Free Trade Zone (CFZ), the largest free trade area in the Western hemisphere. The facility, owned and operated by Seattle, Washington-based SSA Marine and their Panamanian partners, serves as an important transshipment hub for Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as a convenient gateway to the CFZ. B/A has been involved in the planning, design and construction support of the terminal since 1994. The facility currently offers over 1,600 meters of container berth, one 300-meter Med-Style Ro-Ro berth and 16 gantry cranes (14 Post-Panamax), handling more than 1.3 million TEUs per year. Because of a projected annual growth rate of eight percent at MIT, B/A was retained by SSA Marine to provide design and program management services for the port's expansion. The $120 million expansion program will more than double MIT's current capacity and allow the facility to accommodate projected container traffic through 2017.

B/A began the assignment by reviewing the existing master plans, analyzing the port's current operations as well as projected cargo growth, and recommended a multi-phased wharf and container yard on 25 hectares of land reclaimed from Manzanillo Bay, just north of the existing terminal. The Team then prepared detailed designs, construction schedules and cost estimates to accommodate the early opening of the facility, and provided program management services for dredging/disposal, as well as berth and container yard construction. B/A engineers also designed a 425-meter wharf extension to the existing pier. The open, pile-supported wharf was designed for Super Post-Panamax container crane loading. The wharf framing consists of high-capacity precast concrete piles, cast-in-place concrete crane beams and transverse pile caps and precast concrete deck with composite topping. A narrower return wharf and a series of breasting dolphins to serve as Ro-Ro berths for a variety of vessels were also designed and constructed. Additional wharves and container stacking areas will be developed in the future to accommodate anticipated growth at the state-of-the-art terminal.

Port of Balboa

The Port of Balboa is located at the Pacific entrance of the Panama Canal. Panama Ports Company (PPC), a division of the Hong Kong-based Hutchison Ports Holdings, the world's largest independent port operator and a subsidiary of the diversified Hutchison Whampoa Limited, operates the facility 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, handling container cargo transshipments, as well as general and bulk cargo. The facility's container terminal currently includes 840 meters of deep-water quay and a 16-hectare container storage area. To accommodate projected growth and transform the port into a major hub serving Pacific trade routes, the Louis Berger Group and B/A are assisting PPC undertake an ambitious $320 million expansion program.

The Team is currently designing a new 450-meter-long berthing wharf and a 35-hectare container yard. Construction will include the replacement of existing unsuitable soil with two million cubic meters of imported reclaimed granular soil, as well as extensive ground improvement measures to reduce settlement potential and increase load bearing capacity. The Team developed an innovative design and construction program to accelerate the terminal development using four construction packages. The first package, currently under construction, includes dredging

to bedrock and then filling the 15-hectare areas behind Piers 16 and 17 with reclaimed material, which will be retained by a 20-meter-high rock dyke. The piers will then be connected with a pile-supported link structure. This package also includes substantial site clearance and demolition works in addition to the excavation of new channels for the Maria Salas and Curundu Rivers, as well as the removal of eight sunken vessels. This will be followed by a civil works package to pave and develop the filled area and install terminal utilities. Later packages will include berth dredging; a 450-meter wharf extension capable of supporting Post-Panamax container crane operations; ground treatment through a wick drain/surcharge program; and final paving of the remaining 20-hectares for a container terminal yard. The Team is also providing supervision services throughout the expansion.

Upon completion of the program in 2011, PPC will more than double the throughput capacity and allow multiple Post-Panamax ships to dock at the facility. The Port of Balboa will incorporate 1,700 meters of quay, 22 Super Post-Panamax cranes and 57 RTG cranes, increasing the facility's container capacity to three million TEUs per year.

Creating an Island

The Panama Canal Authority (ACP), overseeing the canal's operations, is launching an ambitious construction plan, including the development of additional navigation locks and channel enlargement, to alleviate congestion at the fabled waterway. The Berger Group, in association with Moffatt & Nichol, was selected by ACP to conduct an assessment of the potential for the commercial development of an artificial island using 60 million cubic meters of rock and other dredged materials excavated from the expansion project. The study provided a conceptual design for a 1,000-acre artificial island that would serve as a port terminal and provide maritime services.

The Team first identified the key issues that must be addressed, including potential environmental impacts; geotechnical concerns; the need for wave protection; and financial issues. The Team then undertook field studies to better understand topography, geotechnical conditions, currents, tides and sedimentation. Technical evaluations were then prepared to provide design and construction parameters, and market and commercial studies were conducted to identify and evaluate the potential users of the proposed facilities. Based on the studies, those expected to utilize the island included port operators and shipping lines; logistics and distribution companies; and maritime-related service industries. The Team then identified key target markets within the overall spectrum of potential users, key issues of concerns for user groups, anticipated revenues and appropriate marketing strategies.

Based on the Team's evaluations, master plans were prepared, establishing berthing needs; land-use priorities and standards for public access and other facilities; and support services. The master plans reflected the potential land area absorption rates for the primary users; long-term infrastructure needs; and environmental issues associated with the construction of the island. The Team's environmental assessment included recommendations for mitigation measures to be incorporated into the design phases. Preliminary designs were then prepared, comprising a causeway, with a proposed railroad, from the shoreline to the island; wave protection structures; dredged channels; marine facilities and cargo handling installations; and utilities, lighting and security installations. Finally, Berger provided cost estimates for all engineering and environmental mitigation tasks and prepared the construction schedule for the project.