Jan De Nul N.V. Strengthens Prins Hendrik Dike in the Netherlands

As announced in mid-October, Hollands Noorderkwartier (Northern Quarter) District Water Control Board awarded the reinforcement of the Prins Hendrik dike on the Dutch island of Texel to the Jan De Nul Group, whose work headquarters are located in Aalst, Belgium. The 1.8- mile-long Prins Hendrik dike, which protects Texel, will be strengthened with sand on the North Sea side. Texel is one of the Wadden islands of the Netherlands and is a frequently visited vacation spot.

The reinforced dike will add almost 495 acres (200 hectare) to the island. The trailing suction hopper dredge Bartolomeu Dias will begin placing the sand in the second half of 2018. Once the dike work is ready, Jan De Nul N.V. will build a dynamic nature reserve with dunes, salt marsh and beach in front of the current dike. In this way two goals will be achieved. The dike will be reinforced and future-proofed and the natural values in the Wadden Sea will be improved. The completion of the works is scheduled for mid-2019.

This project is one of numerous dike reinforcement operation planned for the next decade in the Netherlands. Together, more than almost 700 miles of dikes and some 500 locks and pumping stations are scheduled to be improved through to 2028.