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Award: Master services
Value: Part of the $35 billion Texas Coastal Project
Location: Bolivar Roads, Texas Gulf Coast
Customer: Gulf Conservation District, US Army Corps of Engineers and Texas General Land Office
Texas officials tapped Jacobs to help design what could be the world’s largest coastal storm surge barrier system.
The Dallas-based firm will lead the engineering design of The Gate, also known as the Bolivar Roads Gate System, for a collaboration between the Gulf Coast Protection District, the US Army Corps of Engineers and the Texas General Land Office. The structure spans the narrow strait that connects the gulf to Galveston Bay and serves as the centerpiece of the Coastal Texas project, according to a Feb. 4 news release.
The the entire Texas Coastal Project it has a congressionally authorized price tag of about $35 billion, according to a Gulf Protection District statement sent to Construction Dive, with the federal government picking up about 65 percent of the tab.
The Galveston Bay Barrier System, which is one element of the Texas Coastal Project, accounts for about 85% of that total cost. The Gate portion of the project, for which Jacobs won the master services agreement, is one of seven features of the Galveston Bay Barrier System, according to the release.
“There is no fixed dollar amount in the contract with Jacobs,” according to the statement sent to Construction Dive. “Each task order will define the scope of work, timelines and costs.”
Once complete, Jacobs expects the gate system to protect more than 6 million residents and protect about $800 billion in regional assets, according to the release. The barrier project, backed by nearly $1 billion in state funding, will also support continued operations along the Houston Ship Channel, one of the world’s busiest energy corridors.
“This is a generational investment in the future of Texas,” Jacobs executive vice president Eva Wood said in the statement. “Leveraging our experience in the world’s most complex surge barrier programs, we are delivering a system designed to focus on the Gulf Coast’s resilience to extreme weather events while keeping the Houston Ship Channel open for commerce.”
Jacobs’ plan calls for the integration of forward sector gates to limit storm surge while allowing continuous marine traffic. The company will also deploy digital modeling and operational planning tools to maintain long-term reliability, according to the statement.
