Boskalis wraps up coastal protection project in Benin

Boskalis has just announced the successful completion of a sand engine project in Benin, West Africa.

During this coastal defence scheme, trailing suction hopper dredger Willem van Oranje made almost 800 trips between the offshore sand borrow area and the shore to successfully construct a sand engine to protect Benin’s coastline and replenish beaches between groins in Togo.

The sand engine concept, co-developed by Boskalis, has been successfully applied in the Netherlands over the past decade.

A large amount of sand – 7.5 million cubic meters – has been deposited at a strategic location and, over time, the natural motion of wind, waves and currents will spread it eastwards along the coastline.

This principle of building with nature will reinforce the coastline in a robust and natural way.

Along the west coast of Africa, the average rate of coastal erosion is one to two meters per year. Locally, however, more severe erosion of more than ten meters per year have been observed.

The coastal protection project in Benin and neighboring Togo is part of the West African Coastal Areas Management (WACA) program.

The project was awarded by the governments of Togo and Benin with the financing made available by the World Bank.

In addition to the sand engine in Benin, the coastal protection project includes the construction of fifteen new groins and refurbishing of six existing groins in Benin and Togo.