Hall Contracting CEO Cameron Hall said the dredge – christened Maroochy River – was one of two in the company’s fleet with the capabilities to operate both on land and in water.
“What sets these dredges apart is their highly mobile and compact design, which enables us to undertake a range of shallow water projects in confined locations that traditionally would have been challenging to access,” Mr Hall said.
“Both the Maroochy River and its sister dredge, Mooloolah River, are self-propelled and as such, can move themselves from a trailer to a designated work area as well as around a job site, which is not possible with most other dredges.”
Mr Hall said the company had elected to name the vessels after local waterways in a nod to the business’ long history on the Sunshine Coast.
“My grandparents, Les and Mary Hall, established Hall Contracting back in 1946 and sowed the seeds for Hall to grow into Australia’s largest dredging and civil construction company, operating across Australia, Asia and the Pacific Islands.
“We’re proud to continue to call the Sunshine Coast home and be part of such a supportive local community.”
Mr Hall said the team had already begun putting Maroochy River through her paces, with the dredge having spent a week in Redland Bay removing sediment from the Weinam Creek Water Taxi Terminal.
“After successfully completing that project, Maroochy River relocated to Newport, where it is currently tasked with improving navigability in the area’s canals and entrance channel.
“These waterways silt up over time, so our role involves dredging 33,000m3 of sediment, enabling boats and other vessels to continue to use the passages safely.
“We anticipate these works will take around five months, wrapping up in September.”
The dredge will be used in future to install piles; deepen shallow waterways; clean urban canals, rivers and mine tailings ponds; clear rubbish and invasive vegetation; and undertake flood mitigation works around the state.
For more information, view the vessel specification sheet.
