The new Moll de Balears has involved an investment of more than 27 million euros.
Article from CruisesNews magazine no. 59 – December 2021
Last October, the Port Authority of Tarragona inaugurated a multifunctional facility that will house the future cruise terminal. The new Moll de Balears will cover four hectares and have 700 meters of berthing space, allowing the port to double the number of cruise ships that can dock simultaneously in Tarragona, as well as accommodate larger vessels.
Chronology of a project developed amidst the pandemic:
The official document outlining the revised plans for the new Moll de Balears at the Port of Tarragona was signed in mid-April 2020, marking the start of construction. The winning bidder was the joint venture formed by FCC Construcciones and Comsa, and the original construction period was fourteen months. The project's initial budget was €34.5 million, although the contract was ultimately awarded for €27,308,911.39 (plus VAT).
The cruise project in the Port of Tarragona is a work developed with the consensus of the main institutions of the territory.
The first milestone was the arrival in Tarragona of the caisson ship Mar del Aneto, which docked at the Moll d'Andalusia between bollards 48 and 52 to begin construction of the new pier. This type of vessel is used for building caissons that will later form the infrastructure for which they are contracted.
The Mar del Aneto has a length of 46.8 meters, a usable beam of 25 meters, and a depth of 28 meters. It can construct caissons up to 46 meters long, 25 meters wide, and 29 meters high. Specifically for the Moll de Balears project, caissons measuring 41.85 meters long, 16.75 meters wide, and 21.30 meters high were manufactured, roughly the size of a seven-story building. Initially, it was estimated that each caisson would take between seven and ten days to manufacture, and a total of eleven were to be built. As they were completed, each of these caissons (weighing 7,500 tons and buoyant) was towed by a tugboat to its final location on the breakwater's foundation, which had been previously constructed. Initially, the caissons were filled with water to stabilize them, and later they were filled with earth, reaching a weight of 35,000 tons each. The new dock will have a draft of twenty meters, so each of these large concrete blocks protruded approximately 1.30 meters.
Marella Cruises, Costa Cruises and Royal Caribbean International will call at the port of Tarragona in 2022.
In parallel with the arrival of the caisson, and amidst the state of emergency, the first phase of construction for the future infrastructure began. This initial phase consisted of dredging the area where the cruise ship pier was to be built, removing mud and other materials from the seabed until bedrock was reached. Large riprap stones were then placed on this base to form the foundation upon which the weight of the pier's caissons would rest, known as the bench. The bench measures approximately 460 meters in length and about one meter in height. This first phase was carried out entirely underwater and required the assistance of divers for bathymetry and topographic surveys. The barges Darss and Zingst made a total of 500 trips between the Vallcarca quarry (El Garraf) and the Port of Tarragona to place 645,616 tons of rock on the seabed.
In early September 2020, the manufacturing and placement of the eleven planned caissons reached the halfway point. The Mar del Aneto shipyard had already manufactured six caissons, at a rate of one per week. Five caissons had already been placed. By mid-October, construction of the Moll de Balears in the port of Tarragona had reached 40% completion with the placement of the final caisson, which had been launched on October 14th. Between 50 and 60 people worked simultaneously in 24-hour shifts, seven days a week, manufacturing the caissons and managing to build one caisson per week.
Construction of the esplanade
With the eleven caissons placed, a new phase began to join the new pier with the existing breakwater with two new breakwaters, to form an esplanade of four hectares.
To this end, the cutter suction dredger Zheng He arrived in Tarragona in January 2021 to carry out the landfill. It took this dredger a week to fill the new Balearic Wharf with more than 600,000 m³ of material from the seabed, sourced from the Cantabria dock, in the port's inner waters, through a pipe located at the bottom of the port entrance, in order to avoid disrupting port operations.
Once the esplanade was filled with the dredged material, the public works machinery began leveling the 40,000 m² area of sand and gravel brought in by the dredger. The Port Authority monitored environmental aspects throughout the construction process of the new dock. Archaeological surveys were also carried out during the preliminary phase.
The final phase:
During March, construction began on the Moll de Balears (Balearic Wharf) with the construction of the cantilever beam, a reinforced concrete beam 5.40 m wide and 1.70 m thick that spans the entire length of both the outer and inner piers. Its purpose is to enclose the esplanades, ensure proper alignment of the wharf, and allow for the anchoring of 33 fenders and 33 bollards, each with a pulling capacity of 200 tons. These will provide mooring facilities for the largest cruise ships in the world. Finally, in the summer of 2021, paving of the esplanade began, including the installation of public lighting and other services, as well as road markings, so that the Moll de Balears would be ready to receive cruise ships.
The overall rating of the “Tarragona-Costa Dorada” destination by passengers in 2019 was 8.9, a very high score.
The new infrastructure will allow two ships to dock simultaneously, significantly increasing Tarragona's cruise ship capacity. However, it is designed to be multifunctional, so its activity can be redirected if there is no demand at any time.
The Future Terminal:
After the completion of the dock, the next step was to build a terminal on the esplanade. The Port Authority published the tender in early October in the Official State Gazette (BOE) in the Special Specifications for the Port Passenger Service, and the deadline for submitting proposals is December 23, 2021. The concessionaire will begin construction of the terminal next year, which will therefore require the use of a temporary tent-like structure while the terminal is being built. The tender specifies both the technical resources—for example, it must have four metal detectors, eight baggage screening systems, two moving walkways, etc.—and the human resources necessary to operate the terminal.
The construction of this pier is the first phase of what could eventually become the Moll de Balears. The terminal's length can be extended to connect with the Moll de Catalunya, reaching 800 meters of berthing space. This second phase will be implemented according to the port's needs.
Tarragona's first steps in designing its cruise strategy.
The Tarragona cruise port presents itself as an exclusive destination, and an international cruise destination in the Mediterranean, committed to a diverse tourism strategy to attract premium and luxury shipping companies that want to offer the best and most interesting destinations.
Originally, to accommodate the arrival of cruise ships, there were two facilities. One was Marina Port Tarraco, located on the Costa dock next to the Tarragona port promenade, which could receive small cruise ships under 140 meters in length. The second cruise ship dock was the Levante dock, which could receive longer and larger ships. However, the Levante dock had functional limitations, primarily the lack of a large open area.
In 2019, cruise passenger spending in Tarragona amounted to 9.7 million euros.
As a long-term strategy, Bermello Ajamil & Partners Europe, the world's leading cruise port consultancy, was hired to technically evaluate the design and development of this new cruise terminal, planned with the goal of receiving 50,000 cruise passengers per year in the medium term. The future objective was to position Tarragona as a regular cruise destination, primarily for premium and luxury cruise lines.
Tarragona's proximity to Barcelona (just 48 miles) could be an advantage in case of congestion at the Mediterranean's main cruise port. Furthermore, Tarragona is close to two airports (El Prat and Reus) and also has high-speed rail connections to southern France, Aragon, and Madrid. It could play a similar role to that of Ravenna or Trieste in relation to Venice, or Malmö to Copenhagen. Cruise and resort packages on the Costa Daurada will also be an attractive option. Additionally, Tarragona could complement Palamós as a port of call, as they are only 139 miles apart.
Agreement with Costa Cruises.
Since the mid-2010s, the Port Authority of Tarragona has been promoting Tarragona's role as a cruise port of call. The figures speak for themselves: between 2013 and 2019, 196 cruise ship calls and 305,888 passengers were recorded. But the growth figures are even more compelling: for example, the number of calls increased twentyfold between 2013 and 2019, rising from three calls in 2013 to sixty-three calls in 2019; while the number of passengers increased one hundredfold in those seven years, from 1,394 people in 2013 to 128,000 passengers in 2019.
The new Moll de Balears was inaugurated on November 2, 2021
Perhaps the most significant milestone was the signing, in early 2017, of an agreement between the Port of Tarragona and Costa Cruises to base the Costa NeoRiviera cruise ship (formerly the Grand Mistral), with a capacity of 1,700 passengers, at the Tarragona docks between June 2 and September 22, 2017. A year earlier, in 2016, the Port of Tarragona had received twenty-two calls (representing a 100% increase over 2015).
Among the reasons cited by the Italian cruise line were the proximity to Barcelona and the outstanding number of tourist attractions in the Tarragona region, such as PortAventura and Ferrari Land, which made Tarragona an attractive homeport for Costa Cruises. The Costa NeoRiviera sailed every Friday on a seven-night round trip itinerary that included Savona, Porto Torres (Sardinia), Mahón, Ibiza, Formentera, and Palma de Mallorca. These weekly departures, along with two additional calls by the Costa Favolosa, increased the number of cruise passengers to 47,000 in the 2017 season. Furthermore, on this itinerary, Costa Cruises offered its passengers the "Fun & Beach" concept, a new take on cruising, where fun, relaxation, and music take center stage.
The following year, Costa Cruises strengthened its commitment to Tarragona by increasing capacity from that port with the Costa Victoria, which can accommodate 2,394 passengers. This move increased Costa's berth capacity by 34%, resulting in nearly 40,000 passengers passing through the port or embarking by the end of the year, significantly boosting the local economy.
In 2019, the Port of Tarragona broke its record for cruise passengers with 127,495 passengers and became the second largest cruise port in Catalonia, second only to Barcelona.
In 2019, the gradual increase in capacity continued with the arrival of the Costa Fortuna, a 3,470-passenger ship representing a 45% increase in service. The Costa Fortuna arrived in Tarragona on Sunday, May 26, to inaugurate the "Rhythm of the Balearic Islands" itinerary, which departed from Tarragona with additional stops in Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza, Formentera, Olbia, and Genoa. The ship called at Tarragona 19 times between May 26 and October 13, allowing more than 60,000 passengers to embark or stop over in Tarragona.
The 2019 cruise season ended on November 2nd with the arrival of the Costa Magica and Marella Discovery 2. The Port of Tarragona broke its cruise passenger record that year with 127,495 passengers, exceeding the initial forecast of 110,000. This figure surpassed the previous year's by 30%. The number of port calls also increased by 5%, from 57 in 2018 to 62 in 2019, reflecting the arrival of larger cruise ships with greater passenger capacity.
Plans with Royal Caribbean for 2020 thwarted by the pandemic.
In late 2019, the Port Authority of Tarragona's lobbying efforts for cruises in the 2020 season became public. The forecast for the 2020 season was 102,000 passengers, a figure very similar to the initial 2019 projection. However, the most significant development was the five port calls in Tarragona by Royal Caribbean International, offering cruises departing from Tarragona to the Canary Islands, the Aegean Sea, and the Adriatic Sea, on itineraries ranging from 7 to 14 days. The ships that were to operate from the port of Tarragona were the Rhapsody of the Seas, a Vision-class ship with a capacity of 2,000 passengers; and the Jewel of the Seas, a Radiant-class ship with a capacity of 2,500 passengers.
For its part, Costa Cruises was going to continue operating from Tarragona, but offering eleven-night longer itineraries through the western Mediterranean, on the Costa Victoria, which was returning after its experience in 2018. In addition, Tarragona was going to receive cruises from fifteen other shipping lines, including its historical clients such as Sea Cloud, Windstar, SeaDream, Marella Cruises, Phoenix Reisen, etc.
Inauguration of the Balearic Wharf at the Port of Tarragona.
The Port of Tarragona inaugurated the new Balearic Wharf on November 2nd, a multipurpose infrastructure adjacent to the Llevant breakwater. The presentation of the new port facility was attended by Pau Ricomà, Mayor of Tarragona; Josep Maria Cruset, President of the Port of Tarragona; Francisco Toledo, President of State Ports; Jordi Puigneró, Vice President of the Government of Catalonia and Minister of Digital Policies and Territory; and Teresa Cunillera, Government Delegate in Catalonia.
The construction of the Moll de Balears has been carried out in the midst of the pandemic, meeting the established deadlines.
The inauguration ceremony of the new Moll de Balears began with a welcome and presentation of the dock project by the president of the Port of Tarragona, Josep M Cruset, who explained the significance of the cruise project for the territory, the work carried out by the Taula Institucional de Creuers to develop the tourism project and, to conclude his speech, reviewed the construction phases of the Moll de Balears.
Following speeches by representatives of the participating administrations, a twinning ceremony with the Balearic Islands took place. Josep Maria Cruset, president of the Port of Tarragona, acted as master of ceremonies for this twinning event, in which Josep Ribas, Minister of Mobility and Housing of the Balearic Government, and Pere Segura, mayor of Vila-seca, took center stage. The ceremony consisted of placing a sample of Mallorcan soil inside the pier that bears the name of the Balearic Islands.
The new Moll de Balears is ready to implement a “cold ironing” installation to supply electricity to docked cruise ships and thus reduce emissions and noise.
The official part of the inauguration concluded with the unveiling of a commemorative plaque by Dvergastein Dag, captain of the Europa cruise ship: the first cruise ship to dock at the Moll de Balears. The captain was accompanied by the event's main authorities. To conclude the ceremony, all attendees enjoyed an excerpt from PortAventura World's "Around The World" show by Gianfranco Bollini, featuring approximately 35 artists, dancers, and acrobats.
The new dock consists of eleven caissons the size of a seven-story building.
According to Josep M. Cruset, president of the Port of Tarragona, “this new dock will allow us to recover the record figures we reached in 2019 within two years.” He added that “the construction of the new cruise terminal will provide a new, comfortable, and functional space of over 5,000 m2 to offer better service to cruise ships in the coming seasons.” In his remarks, Cruset emphasized “the step forward” that this new infrastructure represents.
The Moll de Balears will allow the cruise ship docking line to be increased by 700 meters and will offer a much more comfortable and agile operation as it opens the door to accommodating larger cruise ships and allows more ships to dock simultaneously, up to 4 cruise ships.
The new Balearic Wharf is ready to implement the supply of electricity to cruise ships while docked. This service allows vessels to avoid burning fossil fuels during their stay in port, which would significantly reduce CO2 emissions.
The first cruise ship to use the new Moll de Balears is the Europa, from Hapag Lloyd Cruise Lines, arriving from the port of Palma de Mallorca and bound for Málaga. The cruise ship arrived in Tarragona this morning with 240 passengers on board, mostly German citizens who will enjoy a twelve-hour stop to visit the city.
To create a 40,000 m2 esplanade, more than 600,000 m3 of material from the seabed of the port of Tarragona itself has been used.
The cruise project in the Port of Tarragona is a work developed with the consensus of the main institutions of the territory, representing the main administrations, entities and companies of the tourism sector of the Costa Daurada: Tourism of Catalunya, URV (Department of Tourism Innovation of Eurecat – Technological Center of Catalonia), Diputació de Tarragona, Cambra de Comerç de Tarragona, City Councils of Tarragona, Reus and Vila-seca, PortAventura, Aeroport de Reus, Federació d'Empresaris d'Hosteleria i Turisme de la Província de Tarragona.
The Port of Tarragona received its first cruise ship on Monday, September 27, after a year and a half of inactivity. The Bolette, operated by Fred Olsen Cruise Line, docked at the Levante pier with 481 passengers on board, arriving from Cádiz, and departed that same Monday bound for Castellón. Although initial forecasts for this year predicted no cruise ship calls in 2021, the Port Authority continued its marketing efforts to secure several more calls in October and November. The Port of Tarragona was prepared for the resumption of cruise traffic, from an operational, logistical, and external health perspective, with the implementation of health measures stemming from the pandemic. Thanks to both factors, up to six cruise ship arrivals are expected in 2021, a number that will gradually increase throughout 2022. In October, the Hapag-Lloyd super-luxury ship Europa arrived on a cruise between Palma de Mallorca and Santa Cruz de Tenerife; the Wind Star arrived on a cruise between Barcelona and Lisbon; and finally, the SeaDream II closed the season on November 5th on a cruise between Civitavecchia and Barcelona.
2022 Cruise Season:
Cruise lines' forecasts for Tarragona in 2022 are bright. The various schedules list 39 cruise ships, a figure similar to that projected by the Port Authority, which could mean surpassing the 50,000 passenger mark once again.
The 2022 season will begin in February with the arrival on the 23rd of the Amera, which stops on a cruise between Savona and Hamburg.
Environmental and archaeological controls have been exhaustive and constant throughout the duration of the work.
In April, cruise lines catering to the American market arrive: the Azamara Quest is scheduled to call on April 15th during an eleven-night cruise between Lisbon and Barcelona; the Wind Star cruise ship will arrive in Tarragona on April 19th, also as a stopover on a voyage between Lisbon and Barcelona. On October 30th, it will call again in Tarragona on a transatlantic cruise returning to the Caribbean between Barcelona and Bridgetown. The Belgian exploration vessel La Belle des Oceans will call in Tarragona on April 27th.
In May, cruise lines focused on the popular market will arrive, with the Marella Discovery 2 calling on the 13th on a cruise from Palma de Mallorca. This ship will visit Tarragona up to six times a month on its "Mediterranean Secrets" itinerary, making Marella Cruises one of the main clients of the new Moll de Balears in 2022. On the 17th, the Costa Diadema will arrive on a repositioning cruise between Savona and Kiel. On May 29th, the Riviera, from Oceania Cruises, one of the leading cruise lines in the "upper premium" segment, will arrive in Tarragona on a voyage that begins in Civitavecchia. The world's largest sailing cruise ship, the Golden Horizon, will call at Tarragona on May 6th.
On August 8, one of the world's most luxurious ships, the Europa 2, arrives in Tarragona, where it will stop for a nine-night cruise between Civitavecchia and Palma de Mallorca.
Royal Caribbean ships will resume calling at Tarragona in September, after their suspension in 2020 due to the pandemic. The Jewel of the Seas will arrive on the 19th for a repositioning cruise between Amsterdam and the Mediterranean. The Jewel of the Seas will return to Tarragona on October 7th and 25th of next year.
The number of cruise ship calls increased twentyfold between 2013 and 2019.
In October 2022, Phoenix Reisen will send its flagship, the Artania, to Tarragona on Friday, October 7, on a positioning cruise between Bremerhaven and Genoa.
Costa Cruises will return to Tarragona in October with several calls from its ships on short cruises departing from ports in Liguria. On October 10th, the Costa Favolosa will arrive on a four-night cruise from Savona and Marseille. The Costa Fortuna will return later that month with an identical itinerary.
On Friday, October 14, the Costa Favolosa will also call, arriving from Savona and Marseille. The season will close on November 9 with the SeaDream I, during an eight-night cruise between Nice and Malaga.
Although the 2023 cruise schedule is still incomplete, the first port calls for Tarragona have already been announced. On April 6, one of the world's most luxurious and modern cruise ships, the Silver Moon, will call at Tarragona during a cruise between Lisbon and Barcelona. On April 21, the Wind Star, a frequent visitor to Tarragona's docks, will return, also on a nine-night cruise through southern Spain between Lisbon and Barcelona. On May 5, 2023, another sailing cruise ship, the Star Clipper, will arrive during a cruise between Malaga and Cannes. Then, in the autumn, on October 18, the Silver Moon will call at Tarragona again during a voyage between Civitavecchia and Barcelona.
Economic Impact of Cruises in 2019
The economic impact of cruises in Tarragona increased by 31.6% in 2019, with an increase of more than two million euros, rising from 7.37 million euros in spending in 2018 to 9.7 million euros in 2019. This economic return to the region, in the form of hotel nights, purchases, and service contracts, is thanks to the effective work promoted by the Taula de Creuers (Cruise Table), where the main tourism institutions and stakeholders are represented, enabling coordination and collaboration that ensures the quality of the tourism offerings for this sector.
It is estimated that cruise passengers spent around €20 per day in 2019. The majority of this spending went towards transportation (76.7%), but significant expenditures also included food and beverage establishments (38% in bars and 20% in restaurants), shopping (45.3%), and cultural activities (15.2%). Among the most frequent purchases were souvenirs, clothing and footwear, and food products.
Costa Cruises began investing in Tarragona in 2017 and its presence has been fundamental to the growth in cruise traffic at the port of Tarragona.
“This economic impact is due to the fact that 93% of cruise passengers arriving in Tarragona visit our region, while only 7% travel to other Catalan destinations,” highlighted Josep M. Cruset, president of the Port Authority. The majority of cruise passengers take the opportunity to explore the city independently (76%), while the remaining 24% book optional excursions. The most popular experiences for passengers who book excursions within the Tarragona region are, in this order, visits to Tarragona, Reus, the beaches, PortAventura, Poblet, and the Nulles Winery.
The overall rating of the “Tarragona-Costa Dorada” destination by passengers is 8.9, bordering on excellent, and was 0.3 points higher than the score achieved in 2018. The rating of excursions also increased, rising from 8.2 out of 10 in the 2018 season to 8.4 in 2019. Among the highest-rated excursions were Tarragona (8.6), Poblet and Montblanc (8.7), and PortAventura (8.4).
The majority of passengers who passed through the Port of Tarragona in 2019 were Italian (36,700 people), Spanish (22,000), French (18,000), and British (17,000). The most represented age groups were 35-44 and 45-54 years old. Compared to the 2018 season, there was an increase in passengers of French origin and in the 35-44 age group.
94.2% of cruise passengers surveyed by the Tourism Innovation Department of the Eureca Foundation acknowledge that they will recommend Tarragona to their family and friends.
