Many businesses have advanced plans to establish themselves in Groningen’s seaports. Groningen Seaports’ sites in Eemshaven and Delfzijl are more popular than ever. The Delfzijl/Eemshaven region is one of the birthplaces of the energy and chemical transition in The Netherlands and Groningen Seaports is keen to achieve growth in an environmentally friendly way in collaboration with stakeholders. But for that the sites and infrastructure have to be in order. TAUW isassisting in that respect. The creation of the Heveskes industrial estate is now well under way. The first industrial firms are expected to start construction work in 2023.
Groningen Seaports is the manager, commercial operator and developer of the Delfzijl and Eemshaven ports and of the adjacent industrial estates in the north of the Netherlands. Groningen Seaports takes care of the full range of port service provision, from logistical services to the issuance, maintenance and development of the sites in both port areas.
TAUW has been one of Groningen Seaports’ trusted advisors for decades and is contributing to the (re)development of sites to transform them into industrial estates. A (re)development project of this nature entails a wide array of challenges. Combining knowledge and experience from various disciplines, Groningen Seaports and TAUW have joined forces to work in an integrated fashion on the creation of future-proof business locations in the Delfzijl/Eemshaven region.
One of these areas under development is the Heveskes site, on which work commenced mid-2019. Spanning approximately 45 hectares, this site is situated between Chemical Park Delfzijl and the site of DAMCO/Aluminium Delfzijl. Heveskes was reserved for agricultural use until the end of the 1960s, but was repurposed in the 1970s for industrial use. Part of the site was used as a storage depot for dredging waste from Delfzijl’s port until the start of the 21st century. With demand for sites soaring, particularly as a result of the energy transition and the chemical transition (greening the chemical industry and rendering it circular), Heveskes proved to be the ideal location for businesses. On the one hand because of the synergy with the existing and adjacent Chemical Park n and on the other hand due to the rapid growth of green energy and raw materials facilities in this region.
In conjunction with Groningen Seaports, TAUW took on the task of making Heveskes industrial estate suitable for new businesses to establish themselves there. There were plenty of challenges to tackle, despite the site’s perfect location. For instance, the dredging waste depot had to be ‘dismantled’ and ways of dealing with the soil contamination present and any explosive remnants of war had to be identified and located. Other tasks included finding a solution for future (complex) water management once the site had been raised to the desired Amsterdam Ordnance Datum (NAP) elevation. By tackling these issues systematically, liaising with various specialists in a timely fashion and factoring in future users’ needs and wishes, we succeeded in paving the way for a future-proof industrial estate. An Area Information Model (AIM) was also produced for the entire Heveskes site, incorporating data on the subsurface conditions, such as soil structure, soil quality, excavated soil stream management and unexploded ordnance. The AIM is also suited for expansion further down the line through the addition of data such as above-ground and underground infrastructure, to which future users of the sites will be able to connect as well.
Preparing the Heveskes site for future businesses encompasses a plethora of professional spheres. ‘
TAUW has the requisite services and specialisms in-house to add value to this assignment in close cooperation with Groningen Seaports. We are proud to be contributing to addressing the challenges faced by Groningen Seaports, within the compass of which greening and future-proofing are high priorities’, - Harm Hubbeling, Senior Project Manager at TAUW.
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