Leading salvage expert Marine Masters has successfully salvaged and removed a collapsed 1200 tonne coal transfer crane and a portion of the associated jetty damaged during extreme weather conditions on 13 March 2023 in Ashkelon, Israel. The operations were carried out so as to minimise any further impact on the marine environment in the aftermath of the incident.

Contracted by EDT Group, Marine Masters provided salvage and engineering expertise to remove all debris and crane components from the remaining structure and seabed. Having performed an examination of the crane’s technical documents and a review of the sister coal transfer crane present on site, the engineering team quickly defined exact locations for the subsea cuts by the salvage divers to allow for the structure’s total recovery from the seabed. The team worked rapidly over 7 weeks, despite being impacted by geopolitical conflict, and completed work ahead of schedule.

Danny Spaans, Director of Marine Masters, said, “We are very pleased to have completed this project ahead of the initially estimated schedule. Despite challenges such as the heavy entangled crane and bridge components, significant underwater cutting and access difficulties, the Marine Masters team delivered swift results without compromising safety. This was largely due to the supportive, flexible and transparent working environment in place with EDT Group, with whom we collaborated closely.”

EDT Group provided main contractor project management services, which includes compliance with local legislations surrounding marine work and HSE. In addition, they also provided the marine plant, which included crane barges, anchor handling tugs, diving systems and other equipment and tools as needed for the execution of the project. The project utilised single point lifts wherever possible to ensure that subsea cutting and rigging works were minimised wherever possible, saving diving time and enabling the speedier recovery and removal of the collapsed crane.

Following the removal of the 25mt electric house lift and the 80mt heavy mechanical house, a controlled collapse of the remaining crane parts was performed and then all the sections were extracted. The team also removed a 200mt damaged section of the jetty and related debris from the seabed.

Miki Peleg, a manager at EDT Group, said, “We are very pleased with how this project was executed and were impressed by the Marine Masters team. Skilled personnel, combined with a collaborative approach and a flexible mindset, create the right formula for success, particularly in a complex endeavour. Our joint efforts on this project have allowed normal operations in the area to resume.”