The New Suez Canal

The New Suez Canal A challenge in time

The New Suez Canal A challenge in time

The New Suez Canal A challenge in time

Photography: Luuk Kramer (landscapes) Ringel Goslinga (portraits) and various others.

Creating the New Suez Canal The Suez Canal is an artificial sea-level waterway connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Red Sea through Egypt. Opened in 1869, following ten years of construction, the canal allowed ships to travel between Asia and Europe without having to take the long route around southern Africa, reducing the distance between the two continents by some 7,000 kilometres. Today, it is one of the most heavily used shipping lanes in the world.

The expansion of the 71km canal was divided into six lots (from km 51.4 to km 122.4), with the Challenge Consortium executing Lots 2, 3, 4 and 5 (from km 58.2 to km 92.6). In order to maximise capacity, these four lots were not attached to individual partners but to the consortium as a whole. This rather unusual structure required companies to collaborate on an immense logistical and technical operation.

After several enlargements, the current canal is 150m wide and extends nearly 200km from Port Said in the north to the city of Suez in the south.

Ismailia, considered the capital of the Suez Canal Zone, is located around 3km from the midpoint.

The canal does not take the shortest route across the Isthmus of Suez, which is only about 120km, but instead links several lakes, including the Great Bitter Lake halfway along its length. Until recently, this was one of only three places for ships to pass.

Never before had so much equipment been deployed on a dredging project, nor had there been a project with such high production volumes. Within two weeks of the contract being signed, the first dredger had arrived at the site.

Over the course of the project, 21 cutter suction dredgers, 5 trailing suction hopper dredgers, 2 water injection dredgers and more than 40 pieces of auxiliary equipment were mobilised, along with around 2,000 employees from 45 countries. Work was carried out around the clock. At peak production, dredging units were clearing more than 1.4 million m3 of sand, sandstone and clay per day, dredging a total of 200 million m3 in just nine months.

On 5 August 2014, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and Admiral Mohab Mamish, chairman of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA), unveiled plans for the New Suez Canal, an additional lane that for the first time would allow the transit of ships in both directions over much of the canal’s length. The Egyptian public was invited to participate in the project via interestbearing investment certificates. The certificates sold out, achieving the $8.4 billion funding goal, in just six days.

News of the canal’s expansion made global headlines, as did President el-Sisi’s ambitious one-year deadline for completion of the project.

Two months later, on 18 October 2014, an international consortium (named the 'Challenge Consortium') signed the contract for the bulk of the dredging work. Worth $1.5 billion, with each of the four partners entitled to an equal share of $375 million, the contract included the construction of a parallel section of the canal over a total length of approximately 35km.

Introduction

Also dredged were two service channels (80m wide, 10m deep) and two cross channels (50m wide, 6m deep) between the existing and the new canal. These allowed for the movement of equipment and personnel as well as the creation of more work fronts at short notice so that several dredgers could be employed on the new section simultaneously. Dredged material was discharged to reclamation areas along the banks of the canal via 16.5km of floating pipeline and 66.5km of pipeline on land.

The expansion of the canal was completed in time for the planned inauguration on 6 August 2015, exactly a year after it was announced.

The extra lane is between 147m and 177m wide across the bottom and 24m deep, allowing ships with a 66ft draft to transit freely. It is expected to double transit capacity from 49 to 97 ships a day, reducing waiting times and almost tripling toll revenues to a projected $13.2 billion in 2023.

9

Facts & figures Client: Suez Canal Authority Challenge Consortium: NMDC, Boskalis, Van Oord, Jan De Nul Execution period: – 10.5 months (dredging in 9 months) – Approximately 2,000 people from 45 countries involved – Over 1.4 million m³ material dredged per day (at peak) – 200 million m³ material dredged in total Equipment used: – 21 cutter suction dredgers – 5 trailing suction hopper dredgers – 2 water injection dredgers – 40+ pieces of auxiliary equipment – 66.5km pipeline on land – 16.5km floating pipeline New Suez Canal: – 35km long – Between 147m and 177m wide (across the bottom) – 24m deep – Dredging of 2 service channels (80m wide, 10m deep) and 2 cross channels (50m wide, 6m deep) between the existing and New Suez Canal – 16 disposal basins, located on the east and west banks of the New Suez Canal

10

The New Suez Canal

Creating the New Suez Canal The Challenge Consortium contracted to carry out dredging of the new parallel section of the Suez Canal consisted of National Marine Dredging Company (United Arab Emirates), Royal Boskalis Westminster (the Netherlands), Van Oord (the Netherlands) and Jan De Nul NV (Belgium).

Operating from it base in Abu Dhabi, National Marine Dredging Company (NMDC) is one of the leading marine contractors in the Middle East. Established in 1976, its core activities are dredging, reclamation and marine construction.

Recent successful projects such as the mega project Zakum Artificial Islands in the UAE highlighted NMDC’s capability for large-scale marine EPC projects. Over the past few years it has expanded its footprint with branch offices in other Gulf countries, India and now also Egypt. With a multicultural management and a workforce that includes Egyptian nationals who started their careers at the Suez Canal Authority, the expansion project felt for some like coming home.

Royal Boskalis Westminster is a global maritime services provider active in the dredging, maritime infrastructure and maritime services sectors. In addition, Boskalis offers a wide variety of marine services and contracting for the offshore energy sector including subsea, heavy marine transport, lifting and installation (through Boskalis, Dockwise and Fairmount) and towage and salvage (through SMIT). The company was founded in the Nether­lands in 1910. By the 1930s it had expanded internationally, opening up business opportunities in Africa and Australasia, including largescale land reclamation for Hong Kong’s Chek Lap Kok Airport and a major contract to deepen the shipping channels of Port Phillip in Melbourne, Australia. Today it has 8,500 employees, a fleet of 1,000 vessels and is active in 75 countries.

Introduction

Van Oord operates in more than 50 countries as a leading contractor for dredging, marine engineering and offshore energy projects (oil, gas and wind), offering innovative solutions to marine challenges. Van Oord is a family-owned business, founded in the Netherlands in the 19th century. The company has a long history with the Suez Canal, travelling to Egypt as far back as 1897 to scout potential dredging work. This visit resulted in 1906 in the first Suez dredging contract, and the assignment to dredge the canal from the city of Ismailia to the southern point of the Great Bitter Lake. The work was completed in 1911, but the company was asked back in 1949 and 1950 for a number of follow-up assignments. Sixty-five years later, the company was once again invited to Egypt to cooperate on the New Suez Canal.

Jan De Nul NV is the Belgian subsidiary of Jan De Nul Group, a leading expert in dredging and marine construction activities as well as specialised services for the offshore oil, gas and renewable energy industries. These core marine activities are further enhanced by the group’s in-house civil and environmental capabilities, offering clients a complete package. With a fleet of 78 vessels – 47 of which were acquired between 2007 and 2013 alone – the company possesses a very modern fleet. Jan De Nul Group’s professional and innovative solutions are trusted across the industry. Whether it concerns the construction of the new locks in the Panama Canal, the extension of Port of Takoradi in Ghana or a 2,000ha reclamation project in Vietnam, the Group works closely with its customers to further economic development.

11

Key plan of the New Suez Canal Division in Lots

From Port Said to Suez

Lot 2

Lot 3

Km 58.2 – 67.0

Km 67.0 – 75.2

Travelling the canal from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the Red Sea in the south

Dredging of new channel 46.7 million m3

Dredging of new channel 43.5 million m3

p. 18

p. 46

p. 70

Lot 2

Lot 3

Lot 1

12

The New Suez Canal

Lot 4

Lot 5

Ismailia

Km 75.2 – 83.7

Km 83.7 – 92.6

Dredging of new channel 45 million m3

Dredging of new channel 44 million m3

Challenge Consortium headquarters and facilities

p. 92

p. 126

p. 154

Lot 5 Lot 4

Lot 6

A challenge in time

13

14

The New Suez Canal

Paul Littmann (The Hague, the Netherlands), chief officer on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

Gealdino Quintos (Malabon, Philippines), boatswain/ship’s officer on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J De Nul (Jan De Nul).

Lesebrand Oomkens (Winschoten, the Netherlands), deck officer on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J De Nul (Jan De Nul).

Reinier van der Roest (Delfzijl, the Netherlands), first cutter skipper on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

second row Gert-Jan Wessels (Leeuwarden, the Netherlands), second cutter skipper on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

Nelvis Henriquez (Goirle, the Netherlands), third cutter skipper on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

Lourdescio R. Caga (Panaon, Philippines), dredge master/dredge operator on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II (Boskalis).

Ricardo Estevez (Uithoorn, the Netherlands), superi­ntendent on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II (Boskalis).

Ante Pavicic (Split, Croatia), engine rating on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J De Nul (Jan De Nul).

third row

Petrus H.T. van Vilsteren (Schiedam, the Netherlands), first engineer on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II (Boskalis).

Tom de Cramer (Ghent, Belgium), engineer officer on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J De Nul (Jan De Nul).

Ron Rutgers (Deventer, the Netherlands), second engineer on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

Siemon de Jong (Leeuwarden, the Netherlands), second engineer on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

Jochem van Opdurp (Vlissingen, the Netherlands), third engineer on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

fourth row

Mohamed Gaber Abd Elhalim (Alexandria, Egypt), electrical engineer on the cutter suction dredger Al Mirfa (NMDC).

Dalibor Devcic (Rijeka, Croatia), electro rating on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J De Nul (Jan De Nul).

Cosimo Minervini (Molfetta, Italy), electrician on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II (Boskalis).

Hossam Seif (Alexandria, Egypt), watch-keeping engineer on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr (NMDC).

Marinus Pippenbarcher (Goes, the Netherlands), apprentice engineer on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J. De Nul (Jan De Nul).

fifth row

Artjom Vassiljev (Estonia), cadet engineer on the trailing suction hopper dredger Barent Zanen (Boskalis).

Mohamed Ali (Kerala, India), crane operator on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr (NMDC).

Mohamed Nizam (Kerala, India), leading hand on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr (NMDC).

Andry de Andres (T Fornier ATQ, Philippines), able seaman on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II (Boskalis).

Firdaus Simanjuntak (Balige, Indonesia), deck rating on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J. De Nul (Jan De Nul).

right: first row

Joseph Yesudasan (Kerala, India), deckhand / deckhand II on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr (NMDC).

Sathar Najeeb (Kerala, India), mechanic on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr (NMDC).

Joseph Templanza (Guimaras, Philippines), motorman on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

Mansur Mohamed (Chittagong, Bangladesh), welder on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr (NMDC).

Eleno Crispino (Estancia, Philippines), steward on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II (Boskalis).

Buwaneka K.E. Ranasinghe (Caloocan City, Sri Lanka), chief cook on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II (Boskalis).

Edwin Riva (Alfonso, Philippines), second cook on the cutter suction dredger Artemis (Van Oord).

left: first row

Mariano Capriotti (Grottammare, Italy), captain on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II (Boskalis).

second row Danang Purnawan (Semarang, Indonesia), laundry steward on the cutter suction dredger Fernão de Magalhães (Jan De Nul).

Crew

15

Dredging of the New Suez Canal A technical introduction

Lots 2, 3, 4 and 5 of the New Suez Canal were dredged to a depth of 24m, allowing ships with a 66ft draft to transit freely. Based on the dredging and reclamation character of the project and the soil characteristics at the project site, cutter suction dredgers were used to dredge most of the material. Trailing suction hopper dredgers assisted the cutter suction dredgers after longer stretches were made available for the trailing suction hopper dredgers to operate. Trailing suction hopper dredgers were also deployed for the final clean-up stage of the project. In total, 200 million m3 of material was dredged in just nine months by a fleet that included 21 cutter suction dredgers, 5 trailing suction hopper dredgers and 2 water injection dredgers.

All the lots were dredged by a number of cutter suction dredgers simultaneously. They were usually working behind each other, separated by a minimum distance of 500m due to the shore connections, and thus widening and deepening the New Suez Canal gradually in several cuts. The material was pumped to the assigned sandfill basins, which were located on both sides of the canal along its length, using in total some 83km of pipeline (floating and landline).

Cutter suction dredger A cutter suction dredger (CSD) is a suction dredger equipped with a rotating cutter head. It is suitable for dredging silt, sand, clay and rock. Some cutter suction dredgers are self-propelled while others require towage between work sites. The cutter suction dredger maintains its position with its so-called spud poles and two side wires. The working spud is dropped onto the seabed, securing the stern of the dredger. During dredging, the cutter suction dredger makes a pivoting movement around the main spud. To create the required swinging motion, the cutter suction dredger deploys side anchors on both sides of the cutter ladder; these are connected by steel wires to the side winches on board. By simultaneously reeling in one side-wire and reeling out the other side-wire, the dredger pivots around its spud. Depending on the soil conditions, the cutter suction dredger determines its optimum cutting pattern including layer thickness, step height and swing speed. The maximum dredging width depends on the length of the cutter suction dredger; for the largest cutter suction dredgers on the project this was up to 160m.

The dredging process consists of loosening the soil on the seabed with the cutter head, then transporting a mixture of soil and water via the dredge pumps (underwater pump and 1 or 2 in-board pumps) through a floating and shore pipeline for further transport to a discharge location. Different cutter heads can be fitted depending on the encountered soil conditions. Cutter heads are interchangeable on site, providing maximum flexibility when dredging different soil types. The cutter heads are fitted with cutter teeth. These teeth can be easily fitted and are replaced regularly depending on the wear caused by the soil that was cut. The cutter heads also require regular maintenance. Welding of the cutter blades and replacing broken adaptors if required is done in a specially equipped welding workshop on shore.

16

The New Suez Canal

Trailing suction hopper dredger A trailing suction hopper dredger (TSHD) is a self-propelled, free-floating vessel that loads dredged material into its hopper. The trailing suction hopper dredger’s dredging process consists of a cycle of loading (dredging), transporting (sailing) and discharging.

One or two suction pipes are installed alongside the vessel. The material is loosened and collected by means of the dragheads, which are located at the lower end of the suction pipes. Dredge pumps in the vessel or integrated in the suction pipes lift the mixture of soil and water into the hopper.

The dredged material settles in the hopper and the excess transport water is discharged through the overflow system.

This overflow system can be adjusted, in order to optimise production and minimise losses. When the trailing suction hopper dredger is full or when circumstances do not allow further loading, dredging stops and the suction pipes are hoisted back on deck. The vessel then sails to the shore, where the material is pumped to the allocated discharge area via a floating pipeline connection to the bow of the vessel. This process is repeated until the entire section has been dredged to the required design.

Water injection dredger A water injection dredger (WID) is a self-propelled vessel.

During water injection dredging, the vessel-mounted pumps inject water directly into the bottom sediments through low-pressure injectors, so-called nozzles, placed in a long horizontal jet-bar. The injected water fluidises or erodes only the top layer of the seabed. After the injection of the water, this mixture generates a density current. These gravity-driven density currents flow towards the deeper lying sections of the area adjacent to the dredge area. The water injection dredgers on the project were used to level the intermediate layers and areas that were dredged by the trailing suction hopper dredgers and at the final stage of the project to level the ridges that were left by the trailing suction hopper dredgers to below design level.

Hydrographic and topographic surveys.

Throughout the dredging operations, regular hydrographic surveys are carried out to verify the achieved depth and alignment of the works and to calculate the dredged volumes of material. These volumes are calculated based on the difference between the hydrographic survey and the pre-dredging topographic (or land) and hydrographic surveys, which are carried out in each area prior to any dredging works being undertaken.

At the end of the project a post-dredging survey is carried out in order to determine, jointly with the client, the total volume that has been removed.

Cutter suction dredger

Self-propelled cutter suction dredger

Trailing suction hopper dredger

Water injection dredger

Dredgers

17

18

The New Suez Canal

left column: Zheng He – CSD, Jan De Nul Al Hamra – CSD, NMDC Al Sadr – CSD, NMDC Oranje – TSHD, Boskalis Jokra I – CSD, Boskalis Utrecht – TSHD, Van Oord Hercules – CSD, Van Oord Antareja – WID, Van Oord Kaerius – CSD, Jan De Nul Cyrus II – CSD, Boskalis

Dredgers

middle column: Al Khatem – CSD, NMDC Umm Al Anber – CSD, NMDC J.F.J. De Nul – CSD, Jan De Nul Coastway – TSHD, Boskalis Barent Zanen – TSHD, Boskalis HAM 218 – CSD, Van Oord Volvox Asia – TSHD, Van Oord IBN Battuta – CSD, Jan De Nul Fernão de Magalhães – CSD, Jan De Nul

right column: Al Mirfa – CSD, NMDC Phoenix I – CSD, Boskalis Edax – CSD, Boskalis Artemis – CSD, Van Oord Iguazú – WID, Van Oord Hector – CSD, Van Oord Hondius – CSD, Jan De Nul Leonardo da Vinci – CSD, Jan De Nul Zeeland II – CSD, Van Oord

19

History

600 B.C.

500 B.C.

300 B.C.

The pharaohs try to dig a canal linking the Red Sea with the Nile River.

Pharaoh Necho II starts building a canal from the Nile to Wadi Tumilat, the Great Bitter Lake and the Gulf of Suez.

The canal is 45km long but remains unfinished.

Persian King Darius I completes the canal.

The canal is reconditioned by Ptolemy II and possibly filled with a lock to half penetration by saltwater from Suez.

The canal is 84km long.

1852

1854

1856

1858

1859

1861

De Lesseps examines the old reports by Le Père and fellow Frenchman Louis Linant de Bellefonds.

De Lesseps obtains a concession from Viceroy Muhammad Said Pasha authorising him to build and operate a canal for 99 years.

De Lesseps is granted another concession to establish a company to the manage the construction and operation.

De Lesseps establishes the Suez Canal Company. Said Pasha acquires 22% of the company; French private investors make up the rest of the shareholders.

25 April: construction officially starts. Customised steam dredgers and diggers are developed and brought in from France.

Ca. 1.5 million Egyptians work on the canal. 60 floating steam-powered machines are deployed and operated by 15,000 labourers from Italy, France and the Balkans.

p 27

p 25 t.

1882

1887

1888

1899

1914

1915

Great Britain invades Egypt with French assistance and begins its occupation of the country. Britain takes control of the canal.

3,137 ships transit the canal.

The Convention of Constantinople renews the guaranteed right of passage of all ships through the canal during war and peace. These rights, originally awarded to De Lesseps, are now recognised as international law. The Suez Canal is declared a neutral zone under British protection.

Bronze statue of De Lesseps erected in Port Said, the northern entrance to the Suez Canal. It will remain there until 1956.

Start of World War I.

The Ottoman Empire in its final days sends troops in an unsuccessful bid to seize the canal.

1952

1954

1956

Continuing British presence provokes violent riots.

Colonel Gamal Abdel Nasser assumes the Egyptian presidency and remains in power from 1954 to 1970.

The Suez Canal Zone is restored to Egyptian sovereignty, following British withdrawal and years of negotiations.

Nasser nationalises the Suez Canal Company.

Assets, rights and obligations are transferred to the Suez Canal Authority. Previous

owners are compensated at the established pre-nationalisation price. Egypt closes the canal to Israeli shipping as part of a broader blockade involving the Straits of Tiran and the Gulf of Aqaba. Nationalisation sparks the Suez Crisis: in late 1956,

Egypt is invaded by Israel and later Britain and France. The aims are to regain Western control of the canal and remove Nasser from power. Following the invasion, the US, UN and Soviet Union force the invading countries to withdraw. After the

crisis, the canal remains blocked by ships sunk on Nasser’s orders.

1978

1983

1992

2001

2006

2008

In accordance with the Camp David treaty signed in September, Egypt regains full control over the Sinai and the canal.

Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel constructed by Great Britain.

The Japanese government provides aid to a project aimed at rehabilitating the Ahmed Hamdi Tunnel, which has developed leaks.

Mubarak Peace Bridge over the Suez Canal opens.

Acts of piracy: threat to international shipping since the Somali Civil War (2006-2009).

New rules of navigation passed by the Suez Canal Authority come into force.

El-Sadat suggests widening the canal and constructing a tunnel and a bridge.

20

1900-1200 B.C.

The New Suez Canal

p 26 b.

p 43

p 32

641 A.D.

1497

1798-1799

1818

1833-1837

1846

Parts of the canal are redug by Caliph Umar and used until 767 when Caliph al-Mansur finally closes it to block access by the revolting cities of Mecca and Medina.

Vasco da Gama discovers route around the Cape of Good Hope.

Napoleon Bonaparte conquers Egypt and orders engineer Jacques-Marie Le Père to conduct a feasibility study for a new canal.

Le Père reports high costs and a 9m (29ft) difference between the levels of the Mediterranean and Red Sea. The project is abandoned.

Napoleon again studies the feasibility of building a canal between the Mediterranean and Red Sea.

Ferdinand Marie de Lesseps, French consul in Egypt, studies the means of constructing a canal.

A new survey finds the 1799 analysis incorrect.

A direct link between the Mediterranean and Red Sea is possible without the need for expensive locks.

1863

1866

1869

1873

1874

1875

Said Pasha dies.

De Lesseps’ son Charles discovers the pink granite stele of King Darius I. Trade routes begin to shift. Goods from India and Africa once carried overland by caravans from the Red Sea are now transported through the canal.

17 November: the canal is opened, owned and operated by the Suez Canal Company. The French Empress Eugénie, wife of Napoleon and an in-law of De Lesseps’, and Prince Hendrik of the Netherlands are among the dignitaries at the opening.

The International Commission of Constantinople establishes the Suez Canal Net Ton and the Suez Canal Special Tonnage Certificate (still used today).

Ismail Pasha, viceroy of Egypt and Sudan from 1867 to 1879, in financial trouble.

Great Britain becomes a minority shareholder in the Suez Canal Company, acquiring 44% of Egyptian shares.

The remainder is still controlled by French business syndicates.

p 23, p 26

1918

1936

1939

1945

1946

1951

End of World War I.

Following a new treaty, Britain theoretically pulls out of Egypt, but establishes the Suez Canal Zone under its control.

Outbreak of World War II. Britain decides to remain in Egypt.

End of World War II.

Winston Churchill says the Suez Canal will be in danger if Britain withdraws from Egypt.

Egyptian government announces that it will eject Britain from the Suez Canal Zone and take control of Sudan.

Britain sends troops to reinforce its garrison there.

1957

1959

1967

1970

1973

1975

British and French troops begin clearing the canal of ships.

The World Bank approves a loan of $56.5 million to deepen, widen and generally improve the canal and Port Said harbour. The loan has a 6% interest rate and 15-year term.

5-10 June: Six-Day War. Nasser orders UN peacekeeping forces out of the Sinai, including the Suez Canal area.

Nasser passes away.

24–25 October: Battle of Suez between the Israel Defense Forces and the Egyptian Army in the Egyptian city of Suez. It is the last major battle of the Yom Kippur War before the ceasefire takes effect.

Suez Canal reopened

by Nasser’s successor Muhammad Anwar el-Sadat aboard an Egyptian destroyer, which leads the first convoy northbound to Port Said.

Suez Canal reopens.

Suez Canal closes for eight years.

p 38

p 39

2011

2014

January: Tahrir Square, Cairo forms the heart of a revolt against President Hosni Mubarak.

Egypt’s sixth president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi announces his intention to realise el-Sadat’s plans to double the capacity of the canal.

Construction to be realised in less than 12 months rather than the three years previously

Dredging history / Suez history

2015 estimated. An international consortium consisting of NMDC, Boskalis, Van Oord and Jan De Nul wins the bid to construct a 35kmlong parallel canal.

13 November: The Challenge Consortium and the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) hold a ceremony in Ismailia to mark the start of the construction of the New Suez Canal. p 22, p 42

Largest amount of dredging equipment ever mobilised to build the New Suez Canal.

Construction is finished on schedule and President el-Sisi opens the canal on 6 August.

21

W

S

N

E

Mediterranean Sea

Lot 2

Lot 3

Mubarak Peace Bridge

Port Said

22

The New Suez Canal

Lot 1

Ismailia

From Port Said to Suez Travelling the canal from the Mediterranean Sea in the north to the Red Sea in the south

Suez

Lot 4

Lot 5

Lot 6

A challenge in time

23

Savings in distance

www.sea-distances.org

Rotterdam

Hamburg

Trieste Marseilles New York

Route via Cape of Good Hope Route via Suez Canal Shanghai

Hamburg

New York

Singapore

Rotterdam

14,945nm / 31 days 9,072nm / 19 days

11,794nm / 25 days 8,281nm / 17 days

11,755nm / 24 days 8,288nm / 17 days

Ras Tanura

Jeddah

Tokyo

39%

Marseilles

30%

Piraeus

29%

Rotterdam

10,788nm / 22 days 4,674nm / 10 days

11,207nm / 23 days 1,316nm / 3 days

14,507nm / 30 days 11,192nm / 23 days

Ras Tanura

Jeddah

Tianjin

57%

Rotterdam

11,169nm / 23 days 6,436nm / 13 days

42% 24

Ras Tanura

The New Suez Canal

88%

Rotterdam

10,797nm / 22 days 3,997nm / 8 days

63%

23%

Trieste

14,945nm / 31 days 9,072nm / 19 days

39%

Constanza

Tianjin

Piraeus

Tokyo

Shanghai

Suez Canal

Ras Tanura Jeddah

Singapore

Cape of Good Hope

1 nautical mile (nm) = 1.852km.

Travel times based on average speed of 20 knots per hour (480nm/889km per day).

From Port Said to Suez

25

top: Still from a state television news report showing the Egyptian president, Abdel Fattah el-SiSi (second from the right) and Admiral Mohab Mamish, chair­man of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA; in dark suit), at a groundbreaking ceremony for the New Suez Canal on 5 August 2014. © ahram online

bottom: Following the ground-breaking ceremony for the New Suez Canal, celebrations continued on the existing canal. The Suez Canal Authority set an ambitious timeline for expanding the vital waterway for two-way traffic by August 2015. © AP Images, New York (NY)

26

The New Suez Canal

A painting of the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869, seen hanging in the Military Museum in Port Said. September 2011. Š Davide Monteleone

From Port Said to Suez

27

top: The concession signed on 5 January 1856, authorising the Suez Canal Company to dig and operate the canal for 99 years. © Suez Canal Authority, Port Said

bottom: Adel Mohammed Ahmed, draped in a national flag, holds an investment certificate in Cairo on 4 September 2014.

The government issued the certificates to the Egyptian public, raising the $8.4 billion needed to finance the expansion of the Suez Canal in just six days. © AP Images, New York (NY)

28

The New Suez Canal

top: Labourers cutting into the clay of the incline during construction of the Suez Canal in Egypt, 1859. © Hulton Archive, Seattle (WA)

bottom: Rendering of the canal from above (close to Ismailia), showing the pivoting movement of a cutter suction dredger (centre: deep blue). © Van Oord, Rotterdam

From Port Said to Suez

29

top: A convoy of royal yachts sails through the Suez Canal for the first time on 17 November 1869. Š akg images, Berlin

bottom: Postcard showing a statue of Ferdinand de Lesseps. The statue stood in front of the offices of the Suez Canal Company in Port Said until 1956, when the canal was nationalised. Š Private collection

30

The New Suez Canal

Ferdinand Marie Vicomte de Lesseps (1805-1894), French diplomat and initiator of the Suez and Panama Canals, photographed by Étienne Carjat. Š Gettyimages, Seattle (WA)

From Port Said to Suez

31

View of Port Said, the northern terminus of the Suez Canal.

Hippolyte Arnoux, ca. 1869. Š Special Collections University Library Leiden

32

The New Suez Canal

From Port Said to Suez

33

Man-made sand dunes along the banks of the Suez Canal. Aerial photo, 1917. Š akg images, Berlin

34

The New Suez Canal

Satellite image of the Suez Canal, which connects the Red Sea in the south with the Mediterranean Sea in the north.

The green area is the fertile Nile Delta; the orange lines mark Egypt’s borders. Š Science Photo Library, London

From Port Said to Suez

35

36

The New Suez Canal

top: A jubilant Colonel Nasser returns to Cairo, following his announcement in Alexandria on 26 July 1956 that he had nationalised the Suez Canal. © Hulton Archive, Seattle (WA)

bottom: During the Suez Crisis, sparked by the nationalisation of the canal, the Egyptian government ordered the waterway blocked by sunken ships. Aerial photo taken by a British reconnaissance aircraft, 7 November 1956. © Ullstein Bild, Berlin

From Port Said to Suez

The first session of the newly formed Suez Canal Authority in 1956. © Suez Canal Authority, Port Said

37

top: A UN salvage team refloats the 1,390-ton Edgar Bonnet, one of the ships sunk in the canal during the Suez Crisis that followed the nationalisation of the waterway in 1956.

Š United Nations Photo, New York (NY)

bottom: A UN vehicle passes Israeli troops near el-Qantara on the east bank of the Suez Canal.

A UN observer was posted on either side of the canal to supervise the ceasefire between Israel and Egypt during the Suez Crisis. Š Gettyimages, Seattle (WA)

38

The New Suez Canal

Gert-Jan Peters, project manager in Lot 3, has worked for Boskalis for more than 20 years and comes from a family of dredging experts.

“Working in Ismailia in the same location as my grandfather Gerrit Peters did some 65 years ago is very special. He worked for BallastNedam on a dredger with steam engines.” Ismailia, May 2015. © Private collection

From Port Said to Suez

39

40

The New Suez Canal

top: A stewardess on the MS Seven Seas. Port Said, 1956. © Private collection

bottom: Vendors ply their wares in Port Said, the northern entrance to the Suez Canal, ca. 1934. Floating markets were a familiar sight to crews and passengers arriving in the city at that time. © Ullstein Bild, Berlin

From Port Said to Suez

A cruise ship passes the city of Suez, the southern terminus of the canal. © Heinrich Holtgreve

41

A café prepares for the official ­reopening of the Suez Canal in 1975, eight years after its closure at the start of the 1967 Six-Day War. © Magnum Photos, Paris

42

The New Suez Canal

A visitor to the Pharaonic Village museum peers over a model in the Egyptian Military room. The model is a recreation of the war in 1973, when Egypt led a surprise attack on Israel over the Suez Canal. Š Panos, London

From Port Said to Suez

43

44

The New Suez Canal

left black and white: Ships on the Suez Canal, 1956. © Arabic Image Foundation, Beirut

left colour: Ships on the Suez Canal, 2010s. © shipspotting.com

From Port Said to Suez

Ohm Ahmed, mother of Ahmed Samy, driver for the Challenge Consortium. Ismailia, 2015.

45

top: Suez Canal Authority chairman, Admiral Mohab Mamish, talks about the New Suez Canal project during a ceremony marking the start of dredging works.

Ismailia, 13 November 2014. Š Reuters, New York (NY)

46

The New Suez Canal

bottom: The cutter suction dredger Al Mirfa is loaded aboard a semisubmersible heavy-lift vessel for transport to the Suez Canal. Š Van Oord, Rotterdam

A container ship approaches the Mubarak Peace Bridge, which crosses the Suez Canal at el-Qantara. Š Robert Harding, Maidenhead, Berkshire, UK

From Port Said to Suez

47

top: A postcard showing the city of Suez during high water, 1916. Š Private collection

bottom: Suez today.

Š Wikimedia Commons

48

The New Suez Canal

top: A passenger on board the Costa neoRiviera cruise ship photographs the arrival at port. Š Heinrich Holtgreve

bottom: Like many refugees after World War II, artist Gina Sinozich abandoned her homeland for a destination she knew almost nothing about. In 1956-57, she and her family left Croatia and made the long voyage from Italy via the Suez Canal to Australia.

Š Australian National Maritime Museum collection, Sydney

From Port Said to Suez

49

50

The New Suez Canal

Lot 2 Km 58.2 – 67.0 Dredging of new channel 46.7 million m3

Bellini Ocean Majesty Central workshop Vivaldi Verdi Workshop Lot 5

Puccini

Work carried out by Challenge Consortium: NMDC, Boskalis, Van Oord, Jan De Nul

A challenge in time

51

Amount of sand removed

Challenge Consortium

one truck = 24m3

Lot 1 15,000,000m3 51.4 - 60.4km length: 9km

45,000,000m3 75.2 - 83.7km length: 8.5km

Lot 2

Lot 5

58.2 - 67km length: 8.8km

83.7 - 92.6km length: 8.9km

46,700,000m3 Lot 3

43,500,000m3

52

Lot 4

44,000,000m3 Lot 6 45,000,000m3

67 - 75.2km length: 8.2km

94.5 - 122.4km length: 27.9km

Challenge Consortium: 179,200,000m3

total: 239,200,000m3

The New Suez Canal

The stated volumes are those set out in the consortium contract. The final dredged volume was ca. 200 million m3.

The Great Pyramid of Giza (2,600,000m³)

= 69 x Challenge Consortium

Lot 2

= 92 x total

53

54

The New Suez Canal

View of the New Suez Canal, looking south from the embankment of Lot 2.

Lot 2

55

Sections of pipeline used to discharge dredged material to reclamation areas located next to the canal.

56

The New Suez Canal

Rod Roque (Navotas, Philippines), welder on the cutter suction dredger Artemis.

Lot 2

57

Y-piece (clincher) for two pipes at the top of a sandfill basin.

58

The New Suez Canal

Floating pipeline on the New Suez Canal.

Lot 2

59

On the bridge of the cutter suction dredger Artemis.

60

The New Suez Canal

Nelvis Henriquez (Goirle, the Netherlands), third cutter skipper on the cutter suction dredger Artemis.

Lot 2

61

The cutter suction dredger Artemis in Lot 2, looking south.

62

The New Suez Canal

Lot 2

63

top left: Antionio Dalina (Manila, Philippines), able seaman on the cutter suction dredger Artemis. top right: Leonardo Mendoza (San Jose, Philippines), steward on the cutter suction dredger Artemis.

Sand dunes made from material excavated by Egyptian contractors employed by the army. Prior to the dredging works, some 200 million m3 was excavated by these contractors at the site of the New Suez Canal (up to the water level) and transported into the reclamation bunds.

64

The New Suez Canal

bottom left: Michael Kusters (Lieshout, the Netherlands), electrician on the cutter suction dredger Artemis. bottom right: William Pacardo Jr. (Koronadal, Philippines), able seaman on the cutter suction dredger Artemis.

Lot 2

65

Gert-Jan Wessels (Leeuwarden, the Netherlands), second skipper on the cutter suction dredger Artemis.

66

The New Suez Canal

Ritchil Villareal (Bayawan, Philippines), welder on the cutter suction dredger Artemis.

Lot 2

67

Iron drum with a funnel on board a multicat shallow draft vessel.

68

The New Suez Canal

Local fishermen on the old Suez Canal. Looking east.

Lot 2

69

The cutter suction dredger Al Khatem.

70

The New Suez Canal

Lot 2

71

The accommodation barge Puccini moored in the North Cross Channel in Lot 2. The Puccini can accommodate around 150 workers and was one of four such barges used at the project site.

72

The New Suez Canal

Safety boots, their treads filled with desert sand.

Lot 2

73

Puccini

74

The New Suez Canal

Lot 3 Km 67.0 – 75.2 Dredging of new channel 43.5 million m3 Central workshop Vivaldi Verdi Workshop Lot 5

Bellini

Ocean Majesty

Work carried out by Challenge Consortium: NMDC, Boskalis, Van Oord, Jan De Nul

A challenge in time

75

Timeline ship types

www.suezcanal.gov.eg

Number of ships

11,250

7,500

2,350

2000

76

2001

The New Suez Canal

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

Lot 3

Container ship

Oil tanker

Bulk carrier

General cargo carrier

Car carrier

LNG carrier

Ro-ro ship

Passenger ship

Combined carrier

Other

77

A team of surveyors measures the depth of a section of the New Suez Canal, a demanding task that requires wading from one side of the water to the other. The two craft on the left and right are provided for the team’s safety.

78

The New Suez Canal

Lot 3

79

Angelito Amolo (Aliaga, Philippines), able seaman on the cutter suction dredger Phoenix I.

80

The New Suez Canal

Jun C. Busquit (Panitan, Philippines), steward on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II.

Lot 3

81

Looking west towards the city of Ismailia as a ship sails into view on the old Suez Canal.

82

The New Suez Canal

Petrus H.T. van Vilsteren (Schiedam, the Netherlands), first engineer on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II.

Lot 3

83

Looking south in Lot 3. In the middle, close to the mosque under construction, the accommodation vessel Ocean Majesty.

84

The New Suez Canal

Lot 3

85

Shehaia Wael (Port Said, Egypt), cook on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr.

86

The New Suez Canal

Mohamed Ali (Kerala, India), crane operator on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr.

Lot 3

87

88

The New Suez Canal

top left: Reda Ahmed (Ismailia, Egypt), welder at the central workshop. top right: Lalu George (Kerala, India), foreman at the central workshop. bottom left: Karim Mohamed Dia (Suez, Egypt), crane operator at the central workshop. bottom right: Mahmoud Salama Said (Ismailia, Egypt), welder at the central workshop.

Lot 3

View of the central workshop, looking north.

89

Pipes and dredging parts stored in the laydown area behind the central workshop.

90

The New Suez Canal

Lot 3

91

Hossam Mohamed Moustafa (Port Said, Egypt), security officer.

92

The New Suez Canal

Peter van der Voet (Haarlem, the Netherlands), relief captain on the cutter suction dredger Phoenix I.

Lot 3

93

94

The New Suez Canal

The cutter suction dredger Ibn Battuta.

Lot 3

95

Puccini Bellini Ocean Majesty

96

Central workshop

The New Suez Canal

Vivaldi

Lot 4 Km 75.2 – 83.7 Dredging of new channel 45 million m3

Verdi Workshop Lot 5

Work carried out by Challenge Consortium: NMDC, Boskalis, Van Oord, Jan De Nul

A challenge in time

97

Gross revenue from tolls in USD

98

The New Suez Canal

www.suezcanal.gov.eg

Tolls in USD

2023 (projected):

$ 13,200,000,000

13,000,000,000

12,000,000,000

11,000,000,000

10,000,000,000

9,000,000,000

8,000,000,000

7,000,000,000

2014:

$ 5,465,300,000

6,000,000,000

5,000,000,000

4,000,000,000

3,000,000,000

2000: 2,000,000,000

$1,942,100,000

1,000,000,000

2000

Lot 4

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2023

99

Marc Despres (Quebec, Canada), superintendent on the cutter suction dredger Al Mirfa.

100

The New Suez Canal

Ibrahim Pillai Abdul Rahasal, dredge master on the cutter suction dredger Al Sadr.

Lot 4

101

The cutter suction dredger Umm Al Anber.

102

The New Suez Canal

Lot 4

103

The bridge (top) and galley (bottom) of the cutter suction dredger Al Hamra.

104

The New Suez Canal

Mohammed Gaber Abd Elhalim (Egypt), electrical engineer on the cutter suction dredger Al Mirfa.

Lot 4

105

Engine room of the cutter suction dredger Al Hamra.

106

The New Suez Canal

Lot 4

107

The cutter suction dredger Edax. Š Boskalis, Papendrecht

108

The New Suez Canal

Hassan Nagaty Khalifa (Dubai, United Arab Emirates), business support advisor, Challenge Consortium.

Lot 4

109

The trailing suction hopper dredger Barent Zanen unloading.

Looking north in Lot 4.

110

The New Suez Canal

Lot 4

111

top left: Mohamed Adel (Ismailia, Egypt), deputy project director, SCA. top right: Ahmed Abdel Aziz (Ismailia, Egypt), dredging department director, SCA. bottom left: Ahmed Farid Soliman (Ismailia, Egypt), engineering deputy project director, SCA. Model of the Ershad building, the headquarters of the Suez Canal Authority (SCA) in Ismailia.

112

The New Suez Canal

bottom right: Wagdy Zaky Garas (Ismailia, Egypt), project director New Suez Canal, SCA.

Lot 4

113

114

The New Suez Canal

top left: Nancy Samy (Ismailia, Egypt), departmental head secretary, SCA. top right: Atef Morsy (Ismailia, Egypt), logistics consultant, SCA.

Lot 4

bottom left: Ali Eldeib (Ismailia, Egypt), security captain, SCA. bottom right: Mohamed Ahmed Ibrahim (Ismailia, Egypt), software engineer, SCA.

Miniature cutter head on the desk of Ahmed Abdel Aziz (Ismailia, Egypt), dredging department director, SCA.

115

Looking north (from Lot 4 to Lot 3) on the New Suez Canal.

116

The New Suez Canal

Lot 4

117

The cutter suction dredger Al Hamra.

118

The New Suez Canal

Mohammed El Atar (Egypt), deckhand on the cutter suction dredger Al Mirfa.

Lot 4

119

Ibrahim Samir (Egypt), deckhand on cutter suction dredger Al Mirfa.

120

The New Suez Canal

Pump room of the cutter suction dredger Fern達o de Magalh達es.

Lot 4

121

Deck of the cutter suction dredger Al Hamra.

122

The New Suez Canal

Saleh Nasser (Sanaa, Yemen), dredge master on the cutter suction dredger Al Mirfa.

Lot 4

123

The trailing suction hopper dredger Volvox Asia in the foreground and the trailing suction hopper dredger Barent Zanen in the background. Looking south.

124

The New Suez Canal

Lot 4

125

first column: top: Ali Mohamed (Ismailia, Egypt), parking attendant at Hotel Mercure. middle: Pascal Lawson, cabin steward on the accommodation ship Ocean Majesty. bottom: Branislav Vasiljevic, ship’s doctor on the accom­ modation ship Ocean Majesty. second column: top: Sameh Gamel (Ismailia, Egypt), guest service attendant at Hotel Mercure. middle: Christos Papavasiliou, staff captain on the accom­ modation ship Ocean Majesty. bottom: Johann Verheij (Veenendaal, the Netherlands), chief engineer on the accom­ modation barge Vivaldi. top: On the sundeck of the accommodation ship Ocean Majesty. bottom: Accommodation barge for senior dredging personnel in Port Said. © Library of Alexandria, Alexandria

126

The New Suez Canal

third column: top: Abd Elazem Mustafa (Ismailia, Egypt), bell captain at Hotel Mercure. middle: Son of the owner of the gift shop at Hotel Mercure. bottom: Terence Letley (Underberg, South Africa), barge manager on the Vivaldi.

Lot 4

127

The accommodation barge Verdi.

128

The New Suez Canal

Nagwa Abd Alnaser (Ismailia, Egypt), guest service attendant at Hotel Mercure.

Lot 4

129

Puccini Bellini Ocean Majesty Central Workshop Vivaldi

Verdi

130

The New Suez Canal

Workshop Lot 5

Lot 5 Km 83.7 – 92.6 Dredging of new channel 44 million m3

Work carried out by Challenge Consortium: NMDC, Boskalis, Van Oord, Jan De Nul

A challenge in time

131

Amount of traffic in 2014 by flag Panama Liberia Marshall Is. Hong Kong Singapore Malta Bahamas UK Greece Denmark USA Norway Antigua & Barbuda Germany Italy Cyprus Egypt China Turkey Saudi Arabia Netherlands Cayman Islands Isle of Man France Tanzania Saint Vincent Luxembourg India Spain Philippines Russia Belize Gibraltar Taiwan Kuwait South Korea Bermuda Japan Ethiopia Belgium Portugal Iran Togo Sweden Vanuatu United Arab Emirates Switzerland Sierra Leone Saint Kitts and Nevis Cambodia Malaysia Tuvalu Thailand Qatar Barbados Madeira Vietnam Indonesia Libya Bangladesh Croatia Curacao Bahrain Vatican City State Montenegro Tunisia Oman 0

132

The New Suez Canal

10

100

1,000

10,000

2,550 x

2,486 x

1,256 x

Panama

Liberia

Hong Kong

1,610 x

1,077 x

949 x

Marshall Is.

Singapore

Malta

653 x

633 x

480 x

Bahamas

United Kingdom

Greece

468 x

355 x

328 x

Denmark

United States of America

Germany

Lot 5

133

The cutter suction dredger Fern達o de Magalh達es.

134

The New Suez Canal

Lot 5

135

Smitbarge 9 floating workshop.

136

The New Suez Canal

Lot 5

137

138

The New Suez Canal

top: Water from an uphill sandfill basin flows back into the canal. bottom: Sandfill basin with bulldozer tracks.

Lot 5

The cutter suction dredger Hondius.

139

Duwi Saputro (Semarang, Indonesia), deckhand-welder on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J. De Nul.

140

The New Suez Canal

Ante Pavicic (Split, Croatia), second electrician on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J. De Nul.

Lot 5

141

The trailing suction hopper dredger Volvox Asia unloading.

Looking west.

142

The New Suez Canal

Lot 5

143

Artjom Vassiljev (Estonia), cadet engineer on the trailing suction hopper dredger Barent Zanen.

144

The New Suez Canal

Ricardo Estevez (Uithoorn, the Netherlands), superintendent on the cutter suction dredger Cyrus II.

Lot 5

145

The tunnelling works for the syphon construction of the irrigation channel under the New Suez Canal. Looking south.

146

The New Suez Canal

Lot 5

147

A spare cutter head stored on board the cutter suction dredger Fern達o de Magalh達es.

148

The New Suez Canal

Siva Appukuttan Pillai (Mukhathala, India), deckhand on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J. De Nul.

Lot 5

149

Spud poles at the stern of a cutter suction dredger secure the vessel in place and provide forward movement.

150

The New Suez Canal

Lot 5

151

152

The New Suez Canal

top left: Rommy Kawangsung (Kiawang, Indonesia), deckhand on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J. De Nul. top right: Danang Purnawan (Semarang, Indonesia), laundry steward on the cutter suction dredger Fern達o de Magalh達es. bottom left: Still of a uniform in the changing room. bottom right: Joost de Ridder (Vlissingen, the Netherlands), master on the cutter suction dredger Fern達o de Magalh達es.

Lot 5

Truck transporting a section of floating pipeline.

153

Discharge location of sand in a sandfill basin after the water has drained away.

154

The New Suez Canal

Koenraad Segers (Bruges, Belgium), chief cook on the cutter suction dredger J.F.J. De Nul.

Lot 5

155

Security guard in his booth on the parking lot of the consortium office.

156

The New Suez Canal

William ‘Bill’ Moschella (Kuressaare, Estonia), consortium security coordinator (consortium office).

Ismailia

157

Challenge Consortium

Hotel Mercure

Ismailia

158

The New Suez Canal

Ismailia Challenge Consortium headquarters and facilities

A challenge in time

159

Number of ships transiting

www.suezcanal.gov.eg www.ufdc.ufl.edu

37,500

25,000

12,500

1870

1878

486

1886

ships transiting in 1870

160

The New Suez Canal

1894

1902

1910

1918

1926

1934

1942

1950

35,405 projected 2023

1958

1966

1974

1982

1990

1998

2006

2014

2023

17,148

ships transiting in 2014

Ismailia

161

A passenger ferry crosses the old Suez Canal in Ismailia.

162

The New Suez Canal

Yasser Samy (Ismailia, Egypt), consortium office manager, in front of the office.

Ismailia

163

164

The New Suez Canal

top left: Ahmed Samy (Ismailia, Egypt), driver for the project photographers (consortium office). top right: Mohammed Abez (Ismailia, Egypt), office driver (足consortium office). bottom left: Michael Bahr (Cairo, Egypt), fleet coordinator (足consortium office). bottom right: Mohamed Fathy (Ismailia, Egypt), driver coordinator (足consortium office).

Ismailia

Peter Zimmerman, Boskalis deputy project manager Lot 3, takes a five-minute break on the roof terrace of the consortium office in Ismailia.

165

Radwa Madboly (Ismailia, Egypt), consortium travel coordinator (consortium office).

166

The New Suez Canal

Statue in Ismailia commemorating workers who died digging the original Suez Canal. The text on the plinth reads: ‘As morality for the Egyptians who dug out the Suez Canal with their hands.’

Ismailia

167

top left: Donia Salama (Ismailia, Egypt), consortium document controller (consortium office). top right: Sarah Mohamed (Ismailia, Egypt), travel 足coordinator (consortium office). bottom left: Nada Emam (Cairo, Egypt), consortium PR and communications officer (consortium office).

Egyptians on a passenger ferry across the old Suez Canal.

168

The New Suez Canal

bottom right: Heba Mustafa (Port Said, Egypt), consortium logistics coordinator (consortium office).

Ismailia

169

Looking east towards the New Suez Canal from the roof of the consortium office.

170

The New Suez Canal

Ismailia

171

Amal Said (Ismailia, Egypt), consortium office housekeeping (consortium office).

172

The New Suez Canal

top: Child in a basket on the back of her father’s motorcycle. On the road to ferry 6 on the Sinai side of the canal. New Ismailia, Egypt. bottom: A bride is transported in the back of a car during a traditional late-night Egyptian wedding celebration in Ismailia.

Ismailia

173

top left: Stevin Dredging's bucket dredger Beverwijk 5.

© Suez Canal Authority, Port Said

top right: To Sinai via the desert.

Suez Canal dredger at work ca. 1900-1920.

© Library of Congress, Washington, D. C.

bottom left: Construction of the Suez Canal in 1861. © Granger Collection, Brooklyn (NY)

bottom right: View of a section of the Suez Canal, showing one of the large dredgers used to clear the channel, 1959.

© United Nations Photo, New York (NY)

174

The New Suez Canal

Inside the consortium office. top: The room used for safety briefings. bottom: The office of Ruddy Vanrolleghem, operations manager/deputy project director, and Jaap Dekker, project director.

Ismailia

175

top left: Jaap Dekker (Emmeloord, the Netherlands), Boskalis project director (consortium office). top right: Piet Prins (Hanoi, Vietnam), Van Oord operations manager (consortium office). bottom left: Ehab Mourad (Alexandria, Egypt), NMDC QHSE manager (consortium office).

Overview of the Suez Canal, both the old and the new lanes. Š Van Oord, Rotterdam

176

The New Suez Canal

bottom right: Ruddy Vanrolleghem (Blankenberge, Belgium), Jan De Nul operations manager/ deputy project director (consortium office).

Ismailia

177

178

The New Suez Canal

top left: Peter Zimmerman (Rotterdam, the Netherlands), Boskalis deputy project manager Lot 3. top right: Age van Zandbergen (Bergen op Zoom, the Netherlands), Van Oord project manager Lot 4. bottom left: Alex Stevens (Łódź, Poland), Jan De Nul ­project manager Lot 2. bottom right: Paolo Pezzini (Mantua, Italy), NMDC project manager Lot 5.

Ismailia

Parking lot at the back of the consortium office.

179

180

The New Suez Canal

View of the New Suez Canal with a mosque under construction on the right.

Ismailia

181

182

The New Suez Canal

top: Meeting room in the consortium office. bottom: Room in the Ismailia residence of Ferdinand de Lesseps, the French diplomat who initiated the Suez Canal in 1859. The building is now a museum.

Ismailia

A driver in front of the lift in the hallway of the consortium office.

183

The building constructed on the banks of the New Suez Canal for the opening ceremony in August 2015.

184

The New Suez Canal

Ismailia

185

186

The New Suez Canal

Acknowledgments Cover: Luuk Kramer Introduction: Ringel Goslinga: 10, 11 Luuk Kramer: 14/15 except: Van Oord: 14 6th row m. b., 15 2nd row l., 3rd row r.

Jan De Nul: 2nd row r.

Boskalis 4th row l.

Lot 1: ahram online: 22 t. akg images: 26 t., 30 AP Images/Hollandse Hoogte: 22 b., 24 b.

Arab Image Foundation (15 b/w pictures): 40 Australian National Maritime Museum Collection, Sydney: 45 b.

Rene Burri/Magnum Photos/Hollandse Hoogte: 38 Wikimedia Commons: 44 b.

Ringel Goslinga: 41 Otto Herschan/Getty Images: 25 t.

Heinrich Holtgreve: 37, 45 t.

Hulton Archive: 27 Michael Janecke/robertharding.com: 43 Keystone/Hulton Archive: 32 t.

Jason Larkin/Panos Pictures: 39 Davide Monteleone/VII: 23 Van Oord: 25 b., 42 b.

Private collection: 26 b., 35, 36 t., 44 t.

Reuters: 42 t.

SCA Archive: 24 t., 33 Science Photo Library/ANP: 31 shipspotter.com (17 colour pictures): 40 Special Collections, Leiden University Library: 28/29 Ullstein bild/Lineairfoto: 32 b., 36 b.

UN Photo: 34 t.

Universal Images Group Editorial/Getty Images: 34 b.

Lot 2: Ringel Goslinga: 53, 57, 61-64, 69 Luuk Kramer: 50-52, 54-56, 58-60, 65-68 Lot 3: Ringel Goslinga: 76, 77, 79, 82-84, 88, 89 Luuk Kramer: 74/75, 78, 80/81, 85, 86/87, 90/91 Lot 4: Ringel Goslinga: 96, 97, 101, 105, 109-111, 115, 116, 119, 123, 125 Luuk Kramer: 98/99, 100, 102/103, 106/107, 108, 112/113, 114, 117, 118, 120/121, 122 t., 124 Boskalis: 104 Library of Alexandria: 122 b.

Lot 5: Ringel Goslinga: 136, 137, 140, 141, 145, 148, 151 Luuk Kramer: 130-135, 138/139, 142-144, 146/147, 149, 150 Ismailia: Ringel Goslinga: 157, 158, 160, 163, 166, 168, 169, 173, 174 Granger Collection: 170 b. l.

Luuk Kramer: 156, 161, 164/165, 171, 175, 176-181 Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.: 170 t. r.

Van Oord: 172 SCA Archive: 170 t. l.

UN Photo: 170 b. r.

Alex in 't Veld: 159, 162, 167 Illustrations: Kummer & Herrman: cover, 8-9, 13, 18-21, 46-49, 70-73, 92-95, 126-129, 152-155 Sources of statistical data: www.sea-distances.org: 20, 21 Challenge Consortium, 48, 49 www.suezcanal.gov.eg: 72, 73, 94, 95, 156, 157 www.ufdc.ufl.edu, 156, 157 t. = top, b. = bottom, l. = left, r. = right, m. = middle

A challenge in time

187

Colophon Photography: Luuk Kramer (landscapes), Ringel Goslinga (portraits) and various other sources, including the four Challenge Consortium partners.

Assistant to the photographers: Alex in ‘t Veld We wish to thank: Suez Canal Authority, Challenge Consortium: Jaap Dekker, Piet Prins, Ruddy Vanrolleghem, Ehab Mourad Moharram, Nada Emam and all other project staff and crew members, National Marine Dredging Company (John Mackenzie), Royal Boskalis Westminster (Arno Schikker), Van Oord (Menno Nagel, Pauline van Winden, Cindy-Jane Evers), Jan De Nul (Heleen Schellinck), and many others, including: Harm Botje Sr., Harm Ede Botje, Martin Jürgens, Heleen Peeters, Christophe Collas, Ahmed Samy, Claudia Wiens, Jan Zimmermann, Canon Nederland NV (Hans Smittenaar and Berend Janssens).

Editor: Bas Vroege Project manager and picture editor: Markus Seewald Texts: Cecily Layzell Fact verification: Andrea-Rebecca Flörke Colour management and lithography: Colour & Books, Amersfoort Production: Paradox, Edam Graphic design: Kummer & Herrman, Utrecht Printing and binding: Platform P, Rotterdam

First edition 2015 © 2015 Luuk Kramer, Ringel Goslinga for unassigned images, other images as listed.

© 2015 Paradox for this edition, www.paradox.nl

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior consent of the publisher.

We have done our utmost to clear the copyrights with the lawful owners of the images printed in this book. Should, for whatever reason, omissions or mistakes have been made, please make yourselves known to the publishers.

ISBN 9789081887649

The New Suez Canal was published by Paradox, commissioned by the Challenge Consortium (NMDC, Boskalis, Van Oord, Jan De Nul).

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The New Suez Canal

On 5 August 2014, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi announced plans for the New Suez Canal, an additional lane that for the first time would allow the transit of ships in two directions over much of the canal’s length.

Two months later, an international consortium made up of National Marine Dredging Company, Boskalis, Van Oord and Jan De Nul was awarded the contract to dredge the majority of the new lane. Never before had so much equipment been deployed on a dredging project, nor had there been a project with such high production volumes.

Within two weeks of the contract being signed, the first dredger had arrived at the site.

Over the course of the project, 21 cutter suction dredgers, 5 trailing suction hopper dredgers, 2 water injection dredgers and more than 40 pieces of auxiliary equipment were mobilised, along with around 2,000 employees from 45 countries.

Work was carried out around the clock. At peak production, dredging units were clearing more than 1.4 million m3 of sand, sandstone and clay per day, dredging a total of 200 million m3 – equivalent to 69 times the volume of the pyramids of Giza – in just nine months.

This is the story of that historic project.