Kiel Canal - Work on new lock chamber is progressing
Work on the new lock chamber for the North Sea-Baltic Canal in Brunsbüttel is progressing well, according to the Water and Shipping Administration of the Federal Republic (WSV). The concreting of the lock chamber floor is nearly completed, as stated in an info sheet from the WSV. Once the floor is laid, the concrete requirement for further construction site activities will significantly decrease.
Therefore, according to the WSV, the large concrete batching plant will then be dismantled, and a smaller one with half the capacity will be established. If the floor is strong enough by July, the water level in the lock chamber will be lowered by 8.50 meters. This is necessary to prevent damage to other structures in the installation from the uplift forces of groundwater and Elbe tide. The fifth lock chamber is planned to be commissioned at the end of 2026, according to a spokesperson.
This construction project is a building block for the modernization of the North Sea-Baltic Canal. The fifth lock chamber will be 360 meters long and 45 meters wide. The construction costs, according to WSV estimates, amount to around 1.2 billion Euro. Approximately 25,000 ships passed through the canal in 2020, making it the most frequently used artificial sea shipping route in the world.
So far, traffic is being handled through two small locks from 1895 and two large locks from 1914. The locks are necessary to compensate for the difference in water levels in the canal and the Elbe. The water level in the Elbe estuary fluctuates with ebb and flood.
The dismantling of the large concrete batching plant will occur after the completion of the lock chamber floor, reducing the need for large concrete shipments due to Shipping activities. The lowered water level in the lock chamber, expected by July, is crucial for the prevention of groundwater and Elbe tide damage to other structures in Brunsbüttel, Schleswig-Holstein. Thistraffic management adjustment will improve the navigation through the Kiel Canal, easing concerns about potential Traffic delays due to the ongoing construction work.
