Groundbreaking ceremony held for Black Rocks Harbor, dredging starts soon

The Public Entity Saba held a groundbreaking ceremony earlier this week to symbolically recognize the beginning of the construction phase of the Black Rocks Harbor Project.

The event took place at Fort Bay, at the current harbor location and was attended by several officials, including Commissioner Bruce Zagers, project representatives from Ballast Nedam and local stakeholders.

During the ceremony, the project board was unveiled, outlining various components of the hurricane proof and future proof development.

At the event, PES Project Director Peter Biemond shared updates on the harbor’s contractual and technical progress.

Since signing with Ballast Nedam International Projects last year, extensive work has gone into design, modeling and testing. The 2D and 3D wave model allowed for crucial fine-tuning, resulting in a breakwater nearly twice the size of the current harbor, to ensure it will be hurricane-proof.

An essential element of the preparations was the underwater coral rehabilitation, where live coral were moved out of the work area and implanted under exact similar conditions two kilometeres to the East.

Dredging will begin in the following days to prepare the site for the next phase of work, including the production of large concrete elements, which will be brought to Saba early next year.

The Black Rocks Harbor is set to be completed by December 2026.