Soo Locks construction project ‘on track’ for 2030 completion
by UpNorthLive NewsroomThu, September 12th 2024 at 12:11 PM
Updates provided on construction work progress at the Soo Locks
The new lock will be the same dimensions as the Soo Locks’ largest lock, the Poe Lock, 1,200 feet long, 110 feet wide and 32 feet deep. (USACE)
SAULT STE. MARIE, Mich. (WPBN/WGTU) — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Detroit District’s New Lock at the Soo project awarded a $222.7 million contract for the next construction phase toKokosing Alberici Traylor, LLC (KAT) of Westerville, Ohio.
The contract award will allow for construction to proceed to have a fully functional lock with a completion date in 2030.
“Option 3 includes construction of the lock floor, installation of the mechanical and electrical systems, completion of the filling and emptying system, placing soil in between the New Lock and old Davis Lock, and commissioning of the lock chamber,” said Inland Navigation Design Center, New Lock at the Soo Technical Lead Darin White.
The New Lock at the Soo project is being built in 3 phases.
Phase 1 (Upstream Channel Deepening) was completed in 2022, and Phase 2 (Upstream Approach Walls) is nearing completion this summer.
The Phase 3 contract was awarded to KAT in July 2022 as a base contract at $1.068 billion.
The new lock will be the same dimensions as the Soo Locks’ largest lock, the Poe Lock, 1,200 feet long, 110 feet wide and 32 feet deep. (USACE)
The new lock will be the same dimensions as the Soo Locks’ largest lock, the Poe Lock, 1,200 feet long, 110 feet wide and 32 feet deep. (USACE)
Awarding the base contract allowed the contractor to begin work in 2022 with the remaining work to be awarded over the next three years.
Progress Update: New Lock at the Soo Project Progress
Three contract options, totaling $95.3 million, await to be awarded.
These options are Option 4 (Downstream Work), Option 5 (Hands-Free Mooring), and Option 6 (Downstream Ship Arrestors). The Corps of Engineers aims to award these options over the next year.
Phase 3 construction began in late 2022, and is expected to last seven years, given efficient funding and favorable weather.
The New Lock at the Soo will be constructed in the footprint of the Sabin Lock and will be the same size as the Poe Lock (1,200 feet long, 110 feet wide and 32 feet deep).
The new lock will be the same dimensions as the Soo Locks’ largest lock, the Poe Lock, 1,200 feet long, 110 feet wide and 32 feet deep. (USACE)
The new lock will be the same dimensions as the Soo Locks’ largest lock, the Poe Lock, 1,200 feet long, 110 feet wide and 32 feet deep. (USACE)
“The contractor has completed over $400 million worth of work through the end of July 2024,” said New Lock at the Soo Senior Project Manager Mollie Mahoney. “The contractor is demolishing existing concrete monoliths and beginning bedrock excavation in the footprint of the existing Sabin Lock. In the Davis Lock they are beginning excavating for the New Pump Well and preparing to fill the Davis Lock with excavated material. The contractor is also constructing a new bridge to the New Power Plant and a new utility access structure.”
Additional activities planned to occur in 2024 include pump well substructure construction and new concrete monolith construction.
Impact of the Soo Locks
More than 7,000 ships pass through the Soo Locks each year, according to the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers.
The Soo Locks are essential to U.S. manufacturing and National Security, the New Lock at the Soo project will provide resiliency for this critical node in the Great Lakes Navigation System.
A 2015 Department of Homeland Security study estimates a six-month Poe Lock closure would temporarily reduce the U.S. gross domestic product (GDP) by $1.1 trillion, resulting in the loss of 11 million jobs.
The Soo Locks are often called the lynch pin of the Great Lakes Navigation System. 88% of the commercial commodities are carried by ships transiting the Soo Locks and are limited by size to the Poe Lock.
Due to aging and deteriorating infrastructure, unscheduled outages are increasing. The economic impact of a 30-day unscheduled closure of the Soo Locks is $160 million (in 2015 numbers).
Soo Locks Hydro Plant Tail Race Closures
The Soo Locks Hydro Plant Tail Race is currently closed Mondays at 6 a.m. to Saturdays at 6 p.m. and open Saturdays at 6 p.m. to Mondays at 6 a.m.
The closure is necessary as New Lock at the Soo construction will have many large marine-based construction barges and equipment in the area, causing an unsafe area for recreational boaters.
