Fergusson North Wharf is a key project of ours. It will help us meet Auckland's freight needs as container ships grow in size globally. We need to be able to handle and service these ships.
The situation:
- Larger container ships are being constructed and deployed to the northern hemisphere trade routes between Asia, US and Europe. The older ships get ‘cascaded’ into other markets, including Australasia
- Fergusson North Wharf was expanded over the years and consented in the early 2000’s for 4,000 – 4,500 TEU container ships – these were designed to fit the Panama Canal at the time
- The Panama Canal has since been enlarged to accommodate ships up to 14,000 TEU
- Ships up to 6,000 TEU call at Port of Auckland, but we need to cater for 6,000 – 8,000 TEU ships in the short term (2-3 years) and up to 10,000 TEU in the medium term (10 years)
- Channel deepening to -14m and Fergusson North berth to -15.2m has already been consented in order to facilitate large ships
- Fergusson North Wharf is designed to withstand berthing and mooring loads from large ships and support the larger quay cranes with increased height and outreach
- The berth can accommodate 10,000 TEU, 350m long ships using the dolphin, however the wharf is short and the quay cranes cannot access the full length of the ships holds.
A wharf extension is required for the port to handle 10,000 TEU ships in the future.
The solution: complete Fergusson North Wharf, filling in the gap between the wharf and the dolphin
- We can then continue to moor ships that hold up to 10,000 TEU, with the necessary quay crane accessibility – this is vital for New Zealand trade and for Auckland to remain a key hub port
- We follow a similar process to Bledisloe North Wharf – extending the existing wharf to the dolphin, adding a concrete structure in the current empty space
- There will be no disruption to the seabed or waterflow
