The works to protect the foundations of the Botafoc dock in the Port of Ibiza are finished in record time
The work carried out by the joint venture between FCC Construcción and Vías y Obras Públicas (VOPSA) is completed 16 months ahead of schedule
Eivissa
17/01/2024
Today, the works to repair and modify the elements protecting the foundations of the Botafoc dock in the Port of Ibiza were officially declared complete, 16 months ahead of schedule. This morning, the APB carried out the final examination of the works, which were then handed over to an inspector from the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility.
The works commenced in November 2022, with the construction of concrete blocks in the Port of Alicante, which were then transported to the Port of Ibiza and laid in May 2023. The final stage of the works came to an end in November last year. According to the timetable set out in the agreement, the works were scheduled to finish in March
2025.
The works mark the completion of the project to reinforce the Botafoc dock, which had a final tender budget of 11.3 million euros. The works were completed 16 months
ahead of schedule.
Reinforcement of the dock
Over the past few years, a certain amount of damage to the main mantle of the bank of the Botafoc dock had been observed and subsequently confirmed via the underwater inspections carried out as part of the APB’s five-yearly inspection programme.
The aim of the project was to repair and modify the dock’s three constituent sections (base, trunk and head) in order to make it resistant to the current maritime climate,
which may have changed since the original maritime climate study was carried out.
For the base section, the work consisted of repositioning the six-tonne blocks that sit on the current crown of the bank. Some 1.5 tonnes of rockfill were placed onto this base in order to maintain the slope of the filter formed by the previous blocks. Lastly, a two-layer sloping mantle of 20-tonne blocks was added on top of the previous materials.
In the trunk and head section, the original three-tonne blocks were repositioned and a main mantle, comprised of 20-tonne blocks, was laid on top of them.
Owing to the nature of the works and the number of elements involved, the project was implemented using sea-based resources: the blocks were made in the Port of Alicante and transported by ship to the Port of Ibiza, in order to prevent any impacts on road traffic and land-based port operations.
Botafoc dock
The Botafoc dock, 515 metres long and with a maximum draught of 20 metres, has a submerged bank of cubic concrete blocks, formed by 12 concrete caissons. The crown wall with a waveguard is 7 metres above sea level.
It is connected to the town by a 1,200 metre-long road. This has increased safety, because the unloading of oil products can now be carried out at a greater distance
than before the dock was built. This also allows large cruise ships to dock there.
