Improving operational conditions at Leixões Oil Terminal - Portugal

Abstract

This paper describes the environmental conditions in the vicinity of the Port of Leixões and presents the characteristics and the operational conditions at the berth A oil terminal which is, from the three berths that compose the Leixões Oil Terminal, the one that has the most significant hydrodynamic and operational problems, due to its exposed location despite the adjacent breakwater.The present situation is responsible for some operational costs, as well as environmental and safety risks to the port authority, which are important to minimize. For that reason this berth has been the subject of several studies with the aim of improving the existing operational and security conditions.An overall overview of the conclusions of those studies is presented in the paper, as well as, the description of the several interventions proposed for the berth A oil terminal with the aim of improving its operational conditions, increasing the stability of the breakwater armour layer blocks and reducing the dredging and maintenance works in the area adjacent to the berth A. New studies involving theanalysis of the behaviour of an oil tanker moored at the berth A, using physical modelling, are now being carried out at the Hydraulics and Water Resources Institute Faculty of Engineering of the University of Porto (IHRH-FEUP).A brief presentation of the Port of Leixões and its oil terminals, including the new Single Point Mooring (SPM) system installed offshore, is also carried out.