Singapore goes green

The berths, first built in the 1960s, had a total area of 2.4 hectares and a draft of 10m. As part of the port’s plan to improve productivity and storage areas, the berths will be deepened to 18.8m draft in order to handle larger vessels of up to 70,000 tonnes, while the storage area will be increased by almost 30% to 3.1 hectares.

Concrete from the existing berths and yards will be cut up, crushed and recycled for use in the upgrading. Pre-cast beams and slabs are also being used to remove the need for substantial frameworks. Certified green construction materials, including green cement, green steel mesh and green reinforcement bars, will also help to reduce the carbon footprint of the project. The pre-casting of slabs and beams will be done on-site to minimise the need for their transportation from off-site, therefore reducing carbon emissions even further.

“Construction of these green berths is one of several initiatives Jurong Port has taken to promote environmental sustainability,” said Ooi Boon Hoe, CEO. “This and other initiatives based on a green port study supported by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore will be implemented progressively.”

The port has been awarded a Green Mark Award by Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority (BCA) for two of its berths. The award recognises the berths’ green construction methods and environmental sustainability features.

In addition, the berths have already been certified by Singapore’s Public Utilities Board (PUB) as an Active Beautiful and Clean (ABC) Waters Project.

Elsewhere, the port is also set to have the largest port-based solar panel facility in the world when more than 95,000m² of warehouse roof space will be fitted with the panels. The US$30m system is expected to generate 10 MW of electricity at its peak capacity. Installation is expected to be completed by December 2015.