Called the biggest and most complex project ever seen in Flanders, the €2.35bn Right Bank sub-project, part of Antwerp’s Oosterweel Link, has been awarded to a joint venture of nine construction companies.
The Oosterweel Link is an overhaul of the Belgian city’s road network that will see its R1 ring road submerged by cut and cover and direct links built between the port and Antwerp’s main districts to reduce congestion and pollution and to make the city more pleasant for inhabitants.
Responsible agency, Lantis, has selected the TM Roco joint venture – comprising Bam Contractors, Besix, Cordeel, Deme, Denys, Franki Construct, Jan De Nul, Van Laere and Willemen Infra – for the Right Bank sub-project, a submerged road link between the tunnel being built under the River Scheldt and the R1.
The project involves removing the Merksem viaduct and building a temporary R1 east of the existing route to keep traffic flowing.
Announcing its role on the sub-project, Besix said: "The urban landscape will undergo an extensive metamorphosis into a contemporary green and socially sustainable environment".
"The Right Bank sub-project is of a size and complexity never seen before in Flanders," Besix said. "Roco is therefore particularly proud to win this contract, as civil construction companies need such projects as a boost and a stepping stone for the further development of their expertise, something the export will also benefit from."
Image: Antwerp will undergo "an extensive metamorphosis into a contemporary green and socially sustainable environment", Besix said (Image supplied by Besix)
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