French Navy’s Jeanne d’Arc Loses Battle Against Time

Veolia, a company providing optimized resource management, has begun the dismantling operations that will involve pollution removal, deconstruction and recycling of everything possible from the hulk of the vessel formerly known as the Jeanne d’Arc. All operations will take place at the Atlantic Port of Bordeaux.

The ecologically sound works cycle will guarantee staff safety and enable over 90% of the former French Navy teaching and training ship to be recycled.

Veolia won the European-wide tender for the full dismantling of the hulks formerly known as the Jeanne d’Arc and the Colbert on behalf of the Marine Nationale, the French Navy. The company’s teams are now set to begin work at the Atlantic Port of Bordeaux on the different phases that will give a second life to the materials contained in these two well-known ships.

The 32-month contract, worth 11.5 million euros, enters into the active phase today with quayside operations to remove pollution from the former Jeanne d’Arc. Ten months of work will be needed to remove all asbestos from the hulk. It will then go into Dock 3, which is 240 meters long, 35 meters wide and 15 meters high, to be totally broken up.

This six-month phase will involve cutting up, preparing, recovering and disposing of materials.

After the 9,000 metric tons of the former Jeanne d’Arc, the 8,500 metric tons of the hulk of the Colbert will also be deconstructed and recycled at the Atlantic Port of Bordeaux and its Bassens Terminal, located at the end of the Garonne river estuary.

All the operations will be carried out in compliance with French regulations on Installations Classified for the Protection of the Environment, with the site covered by an order of the prefect on the dismantling of end-of-life vessels.

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Press release; Image: Veolia