Extension and modernisation of Port-La-Nouvelle harbour

Increasing significantly the appeal to a French commercial port through a major extension

At Port-La-Nouvelle, the Occitanie Region wanted to develop the existing infrastructure into a new-generation port able to accommodate greater transit and diversified activities oriented towards the energy transition.

It intends to achieve this by creating a deeper dock, developing a new industrial and logistics park, and setting up floating wind turbines to contribute to the production of renewable energy.

Having carried out the design studies, Artelia is now in charge of the study and complete design & construction supervision services of the project.

70 ha

of deep-water basin

3,000 m

of new breakwaters

200 m

of “heavy” berths

CONTEXT & ISSUES

Situated to the south of Narbonne, Port-La Nouvelle is France’s 3rd-largest Mediterranean port. In the early 2010s, it has been decided to commission a project to extend installations and modernize the port, with the aim of increasing existing traffic, accommodating larger vessels and developing new industrial activities. In particular, the port aims to become a platform for floating wind turbines. A construction and assembly site for offshore wind turbines has already been set up on the site.

Artelia, as leader of the project management consortium, carried out the design studies for this extension project and is currently supervising the works. The development includes the creation of a 70-hectare deep-water basin capable of accommodating large vessels (225 m long by 36 m wide, with a draught of up to 14.5 m). The existing terminals have been reinforced (hydrocarbons, bulk, heavy freight) and a new 80-hectare platform has been developed to accommodate industrial and logistics activities. This expansion project required the creation of a 2,400 m main breakwater offshore, a 600 m secondary breakwater offshore and a 7 ha reclaimed land area.