Le Havre commits to major investments

The scheme, voted upon at the end of June, will now enter a period of consolidation of project financing plans and the confirmation of co-financer commitments now that the venture’s content has been approved. A financing contract will then be established for each of the programme’s projects.

Different plans

Giving details on the projects, a ro-ro terminal project will be undertaken “without delay” — though it may require phasing, with backup areas built before quays — while “the Atlantic project” will be continued based on the “‘North Port’” goals (this port “constitutes a fundamental capacity reserve for the development of container traffic in certain market segments”).

Additionally, the crossroads between the Route Industrielle (Industrial Road) and the A29 motorway will be redeveloped, with the La Brèque crossroads set for redevelopment too to improve the fluidity of throughput on the zone industrialo-portuaire, or ZIP (Industrial Port Zone), via the Pont VII bis (Bridge VIIa) — plus accessibility to the west of the ZIP and projects under development in this industry.

Finally, an infrastructure-modernisation and maintenance venture “is designed to ensure maximum safety and security of port facilities”.

Those involved “have undertaken to launch the works required from September onwards to sustainably improve the competitiveness of inland waterway transport for shipping maritime containers on the Seine basin”.

More development

The Supervisory Board of the Port of Le Havre — located in northern France — has also chosen to speed up the onsite set-up of an offshore wind farm project, with the port’s management board launching work on the Quai Joannès Couvert (Joannès Couvert wharf) this summer.

“They will enable [Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy] to start building the factories for the turbine blades and nacelles in line with its industrial commitments,” HAROPA said.

“These factories will equip the wind farms that were the subject of an announcement by the President of the French Republic on the agreement to renegotiate the contracts for the farms.”

HAROPA’s three ports — Le Havre, Rouen and Paris — have launched a forward planning analysis of the investments taking place over the next decade.

“For each port, the question is how to reconcile the needs of commercial development with the issues involved in the maintenance and rehabilitation of the port assets with respect to the Seine corridor,” the grouping said.