Lerwick marine engineering firm Ocean Kinetics performs vital role in Aberdeen Harbour development

Ocean Kinetics has overseen the towing and positioning of caissons a the Aberdeen Harbour Expansion Project.

Lerwick-based marine engineering firm Ocean Kinetics is playing a key role in the £350 million expansion of Aberdeen Harbour.

The company also has a base in the Granite City and its crews are working on the project which is the largest marine infrastructure project under way in the UK.

Ocean Kinetics’ role is towing and positioning concrete structures known as caissons. They were towed from floating storage at Invergordon in the Cromarty Firth to Nigg Bay in Aberdeen.

Once positioned they are ballasted with seawater and filled with rock before being topped with concrete. They will form the new quay in the south harbour.

 Managing director John Henderson said:  “Our job is to prepare the remaining caissons for towage, give assistance during the tow then place the caissons and ballast them down onto the seabed in the correct position.

“The first two have now been delivered and are in place – each caisson is approximately 51 metres long, 12 metres wide, 16m metres deep and weigh 5,500 tonnes – these two caissons are the final units for the north-facing 540 metre-long Castlegate Quay.

“The first two caissons have been successfully towed from Invergordon to the new harbour, winched into place, and ballasted down onto the seabed to the required accuracy. We will now move on to the caissons for East Dunnottar Quays.

“This is challenging, highly skilled work which demands great experience and expertise, which is being reliably delivered, thanks to our team led by marine projects director in Aberdeen, Michael Fox, who has been working with Aberdeen Harbour for many years.

“We are very proud to be playing our role in this scheme, which, on completion, will support the international shipping industry and other major sectors, including renewables and decommissioning.”