Van Oord awarded land reclamation project in Maldives

Van Oord has been contracted to reclaim and create 194 hectares of land in Addu City, Maldives.

The works are part of the Addu Development Project, which is meant to address climate change and to transform Addu City into a fully functional economic hub and attractive tourist destination. The client is the Ministry of National Planning, Housing and Infrastructure of the Government of Maldives.

Addu City is located in the Maldives and consists of the inhabited islands of the southernmost atoll of the Maldives, Addu Atoll. It is home to 20,000 people divided between six islands surrounding a lagoon.

Land will be reclaimed along the coasts of the islands Hithadhoo and Maradhoo/Maradhoo-Feydhoo. In addition, three new islands will be created in the city’s lagoon.

The trailing suction hopper dredger HAM 318 will be deployed for the reclamation works and will source sand from two designated areas in the lagoon.

Preparations will commence immediately. Van Oord expects the project will be completed within 18 months.

As part of the coastal protection scope of the contract, Van Oord will install 11 kilometres of shore protection using rock and at some locations geotextile tubes.

The geotextile tubes are elongated bags made of specially developed geotextile fabric filled with sand. They have proven to be effective in a variety of other climate adaptation projects around the world involving the construction of dams.

Van Oord said the method is sustainable because it reduces the use of primary building materials such as rock and sand and therefore also reduces the fossil fuel emissions caused by transport.