Upgrading cruise vessel accommodation on Lifou Island

In response to increasing cruise traffic, Royal HaskoningDHV was contracted to develop concepts and designs for accommodating larger cruise ships on the island.

Royal HaskoningDHV developed a number of concepts that would help futureproof the client’s facilities on Lifou Island, including:

• Expansion of the existing tender jetty to accommodate an increased number of vessels
• A new jetty designed specifically for the berthing of cruise vessels

Our new jetty design was taken forward and developed, but on the basis that we could meet a number of requirements:

• Construction had to be undertaken without the need to undertake any dredging activity
• We had to achieve safe berthing vessels without relying on tugs
• The jetty must be able to withstand earthquakes and tsunamis
• The orientation of the jetty had to be optimised based on local environmental conditions

Three different sites were considered for the location of the jetty. However, with the final location, one major challenge that our designs had to overcome was the fact that the at the 10m depth contour there was a sudden drop in water depth. As such, our jetty structure was designed in such a way that it could be located on a site that had water depths in excess of 20m.