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Bechtel’s Impact Report

Shipyards, Ports, and Naval Infrastructure

Port construction project

When the U.S. called Bechtel to contribute to the war effort in World War II, we answered. Bechtel innovation in shipyard operations churned out 467 cargo ships and tankers at Calship in Los Angeles and another 100 tankers and cargo vessels from Marinship in Sausalito, California. 

Today, Bechtel has completed more than 80 port, harbor, and maritime projects for customers around the world.

Technical capabilities

Our in-house team is capable of performing any or every part of a maritime infrastructure project:

  • Port and harbor master planning
  • Coastal engineering
  • Environmental impact assessments
  • Port infrastructure planning including intermodal connections
  • Project and construction management
  • Hands-on understanding and optimization of port operations

Bechtel has the ability and flexibility to undertake any size marine development project, ranging from small feasibility studies to major marine infrastructure developments anywhere in the world. Our customers and their missions benefit from efficiencies gained from more than 120 years of global megaproject delivery.

Key projects

  • Jubail Industrial City

    Bechtel has managed one of the largest civil engineering projects in the world since it began in the mid-1970s. 

    The development comprises two ports—industrial and commercial—located within a 17-square-mile artificial harbor protected by 11 miles of breakwater.

    The development also comprises a 5.6-mile-by-984-foot causeway, with a four-berth open-sea tank terminal, a dry-bulk terminal with nine berths, a service quay, and a module-import facility.

     

  • Chevron Wheatstone LNG Project

    Bechtel was Chevron's engineering, procurement, construction, and commissioning contractor for the downstream scope on the Wheatstone LNG project in Australia.  We delivered:

    • A shipping channel involving 30 million cubic meters of dredging
    • A material offloading facility and product loading facility including a jetty more than a mile long
    • Two liquid natural gas trains with a combined capacity of 8.9 million tons per year.
    • Utilities, power generators, buildings, and all onshore infrastructure and services

  • Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program

    From 2006 to 2018, a Bechtel subsidiary operated the Naval Nuclear Laboratory and a design, procurement, and in-service support company for the U.S. Navy. Bechtel

    • Designed reactor systems, materials and cores for nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and submarines including the USS Gerald R. Ford (above)
    • Supported the deployed fleet, including developing field upgrades and servicing equipment to defuel/refuel reactors
    • Provided acquisition management and support services for pumps, valves, reactor cores, and other equipment needed for the nuclear fleet
    • Managed the infrastructure and facilities needed to accomplish the work securely and safely
    • Performed fleet logistics services for all equipment provided.

Innovating for the future

Bechtel innovations are helping customers daily. They include:

$60 million investment in developing new means and methods of construction

  • Additive construction and manufacturing (3D printing)
  • Collaborations on autonomous and semi-autonomous machinery
  • Engineering and Construction Innovation Center testing wearable tech, VR/AR, robotics

Building Information Modeling innovations

  • 4D (time),
  • 5D (resource-based)
  • 6D (facility operations-based) applications

Domain knowledge in:

  • Full EPC and PM services
  • Physical, electronic, cyber security; NIST Framework
  • Quality Management Systems: ISO 9001:2015, DOE NQA-1, AS9100, MDA MAP
  • Unmatched worker safety performance