Port accessPort of Bilbao Ro-Ro Ramp Nº 5, is operational again after the improvement works carried out by the Port Authority of Bilbao, which means it can now take loads of up to 250 tonnes. This ramp provides services for shipping operator Finnlines, whose agent is Toro y Betolaza.
The works, awarded to Zamakona Yards, required an investment of nearly 500,000 euros and received aid from the European Union’s Connecting Europe Facility (CEF) programme. First, the works comprised changing the position of the embarking gangway with regards to the float axis in order to place it in the same position of the pier. Then, the gradients of the superstructure, the ramp transition area from vessel to gangway, were reduced from 10 to 5 degrees so as to facilitate the passage of low-height wheeled loads with respect to the ground. Finally, all the metal work was cleaned up and painted.
At present, the Port Authority of Bilbao, has four active Ro-Ro ramps, three of which can take loads of up to 250 tonnes and
one of 100 tonnes.
Given the important increase in project and heavy-lift cargoes the Port of Bilbao has been experiencing in recent years, the improvement in the ramps will contribute to greater efficiency in these operations.
