PD Ports strengthens South Gare breakwater

One of Teesside’s largest engineering projects is underway as PD Ports begins a multi-million-pound programme to strengthen the historic South Gare breakwater against increasingly severe storm conditions.

The project follows 18 months of surveys, research, design development and modelling to determine how best to protect the structure at the mouth of the River Tees.

Built more than 150 years ago, the breakwater safeguards navigation for thousands of vessels using the river each year.

“These are the largest works carried out on the breakwater since it was originally constructed more than 150 years ago,” said Paul Foreman, chief executive of PD Ports.

“Our aim is not only to protect the structure today, but to ensure it continues to perform its vital role well into the future.”

The first phase will involve installing around 15,000 tonnes of high-density granite, sourced from Norway, around the breakwater’s base. Contractors McLaughlin & Harvey, working with Herbosch-Kiere, will use a specialist installation barge to position rocks measuring up to 2.5 metres in diameter and weighing as much as 30 tonnes.

Placed predominantly below the waterline, the rocks are designed to absorb and dissipate wave energy before it reaches the existing structure. A further 40,000 tonnes of rock are planned for installation next summer.

The breakwater suffered damage during Storm Babet in 2023, highlighting the vulnerability of coastal infrastructure to increasingly extreme weather events. Remedial repairs were completed earlier this year.

Extensive physical testing at HR Wallingford in Oxfordshire helped shape the final design. Engineers used a 1:50 scale model and simulated conditions associated with a one-in-200-year storm, including a 9.2-metre wave.

“This project is the result of an extensive programme of surveys, research and engineering design work,” said Mark Pearson, director of Project Engineering at PD Ports.

The upgraded protection system is intended to extend the breakwater’s operational resilience for another 150 years, supporting safe navigation and protecting Teesport and wider River Tees infrastructure.