TM Cotu, a consortium of Besix, Stadsbader Contractors, Deme Group and Jan De Nul, recently completed construction of the first tunnel element on the left bank of the River Scheldt and flooding of this part of the site began earlier this month.
The 1.8km-long Scheldt Tunnel is part of the Oosterweel Link, a ring road around Antwerp designed to improve links to the city and its port.
Over the coming weeks, 150,000m3 of water will be pumped from the Scheldt into the area in preparation for the next phase of the project.
The flooding is a critical step towards the planned breaching of the current dyke next year, allowing the river to flow freely and creating additional room for natural flood management. A new dyke – 2.5m higher – will be constructed 300m inland, creating a 24ha ecologically valuable area with mudflats, tidal marshes and a floodplain forest to strengthen Antwerp’s flood defence.
Elke Rombaut, project manager earthworks and dredging at TM Cotu, said the tunnel yard needed to be flooded progressively because the River Scheldt’s strong current meant breaching the current dyke could damage the tunnel.
The remaining eight tunnel elements for the Scheldt Tunnel have been constructed in a dedicated dry dock in Zeebrugge. Each element is 160m long and 40m wide. Structural work was completed in September 2024. The elements are now being prepared for transport to Antwerp in 2025.
Preparations include sealing the ends of each element with temporary walls, installing ballast tanks for buoyancy and adding tensioning strands to ensure the eight segments of each element remain securely connected during transport. The tunnel elements will be towed one by one via the North Sea and Scheldt to Antwerp, where they will be submerged and connected to the riverbanks.
Set for completion in phases, the Scheldt Tunnel will open to cyclists in 2028 and to motorised traffic by 2030. As part of the broader Oosterweel Link project, it will provide a vital new crossing of the Scheldt and close the northern section of the Antwerp Ring Road, easing congestion and improving connectivity.
