Dock gate refurbished in rare operation

Malta Shipyards has completed major refurbishment of the dock gate of No 4 dock, the first in 44 years.

The dockyard said the project started in May when divers disconnected the dock gate from its underwater main hinges and then floated it out of its housing. A complicated de-ballasting operation of the gate was undertaken and the dock gate was then towed away and docked in No. 7 Dock where the work was undertaken as quickly as possible, since it meant having both No. 4 Dock and No. 7 Dock out of commercial service.

The required repairs to steel, piping, valves and other work were carried out and a 20 year paint system was applied throughout, especially on the external wet side of the gate as this can rarely be attended to when the dock gate is in operation. The dock gate was also furnished with a new cathodic protection system which will assist the protection of the dock gate from corrosion.

The refurbishment was planned to take 28 days but was completed in 23 days. The gate was then re-floated, towed to position at the dock entrance, ballasted and realigned in its housing in a 12-hour operation.

No. 4 Dock was returned to service when the Greek tanker ‘Georgios M’ entered the dock (picture).