Works contract for Santa Iria Harbour redevelopment and maritime protection awarded for about five million Euros - Communication

Secretaria Regional do Turismo, Mobilidade e Infraestruturas

The Regional Secretary for Tourism, Mobility and Infrastructures, Berta Cabral, has just signed the order awarding the works contract for the "Redevelopment and Maritime Protection of the Santa Iria Harbour - São Miguel Island’ to the proposal submitted by the consortium AFAVIAS- Engenharia e Construções – Açores, S.A. and AFAVIAS – Engenharia e Construções, S.A., for approximately five million Euros, more precisely €4,589,999.99.

"With this project, we aim to promote safety conditions in the Santa Iria Harbour area by stabilising the cliffs adjacent to the regional access road to the harbour, mitigating the geotechnical risk to people and property, both on the access road to the harbour and in the sunbathing area, through the installation of support elements adapted to the local environmental exposure and with low visual impact," stressed the government official. 

Simultaneously, this project also intends to ensure coastal protection against the direct action of sea turbulence, both in the northern and southern sectors of the harbour infrastructure, as well as to safeguard and preserve the built heritage in the Santa Iria Harbour.

The intervention planned for the harbour consists of clearing and blasting the cliffs to implement a stabilisation solution based on nailing and metal mesh, covering an area of about 27,000m2, as well as the construction of rainwater drainage systems.

There are also plans to upgrade the access road to the harbour, namely paving works, the construction of walls and placement of signs, and the redevelopment of the harbour, including the preservation of the built heritage.

Ensuring coastal protection against the direct action of sea waves, both in the northern and southern sectors of the infrastructure, and safeguarding and preserving the heritage built in the Santa Iria Harbour are essential aspects in this large-scale project.