The Port of Liepaja is a part of the comprehensive TEN-T network, servicing the EU internal market, and following the implementation of Cohesion Fund’s (CF) project “Deepening of the Port of Liepaja” has seen a significantly increased traffic of heavy-lift ships. In certain cases, including in the result of water level fluctuations, ships have to leave Liepaja with a reduced safety margin (water depth below the ship’s keel), leading to significantly increased likelihood of maritime risks.

In order not to endanger the safety of ships, while leaving the port with a reduced safety margin, enterprises of the Port of Liepaja regularly carry out the final loading of ships on the outer road of the port via ship-to-ship transshipment. On the outer road of the port ships are fully exposed to the open sea, thereby endangering the ships involved in the cargo operation, as well as the marine environment, by causing possible pollution from cargo and oil products fallen in the sea during transshiment.

The problem would be resolved by the improvement of port’s water infrastructure, which includes widening the shipping lane - creation of anchorages on the inner road of the port, which will allow for the final loading of ships to take place in the port area, where they are protected from the exposure to the open sea by a system of port’s hydrotechnical protective structures. In turn, the improvement of the shipping lane, which includes its deepening, widening and straightening, will ensure safe movement of ships until they reach the port area protected by its hydrotechnical structures - piers and breakwaters.

The aim of the project “Improvement of the Water Infrastructure in the Port of Liepaja”: is to eliminate the limits to the operation of Trans-European Networks infrastructure caused by the problematic points, by improving the water infrastructure of the Port of Liepaja.

The following water infrastructure improvement activities will be carried out within the framework of the project:

The activities carried out as a result of the project implementation will significantly improve the maritime safety of heavy-lift ships when visiting the Port of Liepaja, thus reducing the potential losses of sea traffic participants, including the downtime of ships and the losses to the economies of importing countries in relation to untimely delivered goods.

Project No.6.1.1.0/17/I/005 “Improvement of the Water Infrastructure in the Port of Liepaja” is implemented within the framework of the specific objective of aid 6.1.1. “Increase the Safety Level of Larger Ports and Improve the Transport Network Mobility” of the Operational Program “Growth and Employment”.