Project

General description and context

The port of Heraklion is one of the main ports of national importance in the Greek Maritime Network and its economic data are evidence of the importance of its role. Due to its geographical location, it has the potential to become a further critical development hub in the East Mediterranean Region, for Greece, and for the island of Crete. It is also a core Port on the Orient/East-Med Core Network Corridor of the TEN-T network. 

The Heraklion Port Authority and its Master Plan contribute strategically to the expansion and improvement of the quality of transport services provided, to the development of the region’s internal interconnections that are vital to regional development and economic cohesion, and to the improvement of safe conditions in transport as well as to the integration of the various means of transport into transport networks. These characteristics elevate the importance of the Heraklion port for the European and the Member State economy, helping the Port Authority to adequately plan its development and to integrate its operations within the respective priorities of the EU and the Greek state.

The development of the port is a precondition for the general development of the economy of Greece and the EU, as a southern gateway to the European TEN-T. Due to the importance of the port to the wider transport network, the port has set the provision of high quality services as one of its strategic goals. This is to be achieved within the context of the creation of a sustainable ecological environment with high economic efficiency, with the port seeking to improve port interoperability in transport, logistics, services, and the integrated industrial system.

Project summary

HUPPINES project contributes to the increase of safe maritime access by improving basic port infrastructure, and to the increase of environmental benefits by deploying wave energy generation on the windward breakwater.

The project addresses studies for the upgrade and extension of the existing windward breakwater, and for the installation of a wave energy generation system at the port of Heraklion.

In particular, HUPPINES will include the Detailed Engineering Design Studies for the following activities:

  1. Upgrade of the safety level and reinforcement of the windward breakwater’s effective strength.
  2. Reinforcing the existing armouring of the breakwater, featuring a Tetrapod precast concrete block armour layer with an approximate length of 1,000 m.
  3. Construction of new armouring to dissipate wave energy and consequently improve safety during vessel approach. This will also reduce wave overtopping of the breakwater, thus enhancing safety for pedestrians and vehicles moving along the apron. The proposed armouring will be constructed using Accropode precast concrete blocks for a length of approximately 1,000 m.
  4. Extension of the port’s windward breakwater. The study examines the extension of the existing windward breakwater of the port of Heraklion by 280 m in order to improve protection of the port against waves, and to improve the safe approach of vessels. Moreover, these works will further facilitate the manoeuvring of vessels within the basin under severe wave and wind conditions.
  5. Design and planning for the installation of a wave energy power station on the windward breakwater, which shall be constructed at a future stage. This future power plant will allow the breakwater to become a source of clean electricity for the Port of Heraklion. The planning and design will include (i) the preparation of the power station design including the mechanical, electrical, and hydraulic sub-systems of the power plant, and (ii) the development of a new civil engineering design for the installation of the mechanical sub-system (floater and floater arms) on the armouring (Tetrapods & Accropodes) of the breakwater.

Overall, the project will deliver all the necessary documentation including studies and designs, the Cost-Benefit Analysis, and the tender documents for the subsequent works, which will improve the port’s safety and its environmental profile.

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