Major container plans for Portuguese port

The Portuguese government has launched a tender for the construction of a second container terminal at the Port of Sines, the Vasco de Gama Terminal.

Representing a total private investment of €642m, the new terminal will have an annual handling capacity of 3.5m TEU, offering -20m of depth and a 1.375m quay front with three simultaneous berthing positions for the world’s largest container vessels.

The tender will be awarded in the last quarter of 2020, with construction due to start in 2021 and expected to last three years. The concession will be granted for 50 years.

Terminal XXI expansion

The Port of Sines Authority and PSA Sines have also agreed to expand the ‘Terminal XXI’ container terminal, in a bid to double the Port of Sines’ containerized cargo capacity.

Currently the only container terminal existing at the Port of Sines, Terminal XXI handles around 56% of Portugal’s containerised cargo, offering a total capacity of 2.3m TEU.

The terminal’s capacity will be doubled to 4.1m TEU, while the quay front will be enlarged to 1.750m, to enable the simultaneous operation of four state-of-the-art container ships.

Total private investment of €660.9m to be made by the concessionaire, PSA Sines, comprises not only the expansion of the quay and its handling equipment, but also the maintenance, replacement and renovation of equipment already installed in previous expansion phases, during the whole concession period.

The two projects will enable the Port of Sines to offer a total throughput capacity over 7m TEU.