DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF HADERA OFFSHORE COAL UNLOADING TERMINAL

A new coal fired power plant constructed by the Israel Electric Corporation on the Mediterranean coast off Hadera, Israel, requires the import of 3.3 million tons of coal per year. As there is no port on the Israeli Mediterranean coast capable of handling the 60,000 to 140,000 DWT bulk carriers required for transferring of coal, several studies were conducted in order to decide on the most feasible facility for mooring and unloading these boats. Rather than expand existing ports or build a new protected port, a decision was finally taken to construct an unprotected offshore terminal at the power plant site. The terminal was designed to accommodate bulk carriers of up to 140,000 DWT in the first stage, and up to 170,000 DWT with future expansion. The design of the coal unloading terminal in an unprotected environment created the need to develop design criteria as well as operational and structural systems that will respond to problems arising from unloading bulk in the open sea. As there was no known precedent of an unprotected unloading terminal, the criteria was based on experience in existing offshore loading terminals, laboratory tests and engineering judgment. The construction of an unprotected offshore terminal, at a cost of $60 million (excluding mechanical equipment), represents a considerable saving of time and money in comparison to the expansion of existing ports or construction of a new protected facility.