Moneos - Depening and widening of the shipping channel in the Wester Scheldt

The Scheldt estuary is an international seaway which is partly located in the Flemish region of Belgium and partly in the Netherlands. Large ocean-going vessels travel up and down the estuary to and from the port of Antwerp, but the shipping channel has eleven natural sand bars which need to be crossed. This means that ships with a large draught have to wait for the right tidal conditions to be able to sail over these obstacles. Long waiting times make the port of Antwerp unattractive to shipping operators, which is an undesirable situation since a thriving harbour is important to the good economic health of the Scheldt estuary area. For this reason, Flanders and the Netherlands have made plans to deepen and widen the shipping channel, which will make it possible for ships with a draught of up to 13.10 metres to sail to Antwerp harbour regardless of the tidal conditions.