CSA Global´s Managing Director Jeff Elliott (left) presenting the survey to local media. Photograph: HKND Group

HKND Group Announced Commencement of Aerial Survey for Nicaragua Canal

23 September 2015

On September 21, 2015 in Managua, HKND Group announced commencement of the aerial survey along the proposed canal route. Representatives from Nicaragua Canal and Development Project Commission, HKND Group and CSA Global were present for the ceremony.

The survey will cover the 276km canal corridor connecting the Atlantic to the Pacific and a 2km-wide circumference of Lake Nicaragua, with a total flight distance of approximately 18,000 km.

“The survey is a major step in the construction development process and supports pre-works planning, design and engineering for the canal and infrastructure”, stated Senior Advisor of HKND Group, John Murray.

Two specialized aircrafts have been commissioned to complete different aspects of the aerial survey. The project will employ the most modern equipment and utilize Precise Point Positioning (PPP) data processing technology to ensure the accuracy of the survey. The airborne LiDAR method (Light Detection and Ranging) is capable to penetrate the dense forests and detect the actual topography and surface water. When applied to the water section, the technology is also able to generate terrain mapping of shallow sections of Lake Nicaragua shoreline and along the lake section of the canal route.

CSA Global of Australia is a leading geological, resource and management consulting company with a broad international footprint. CSA Global´s Managing Director Jeff Elliott stated, “The Nicaragua Interoceanic Grand Canal project is of international significance and has the potential to economically transform Nicaragua and the region. CSA Global is very proud to be associated with such a visionary project. CSA Global’s capabilities and experience are a good fit for the project’s technical requirements.”

In addition to the airborne LiDAR technology and high-resolution digital photography (for land topography and near-shore bathymetric mapping), CSA Global will adopt airborne geophysics methods to obtain geological information of the project area, which in turn will form the enhanced base datasets to progress with reference designs and planning of the construction phase.

According to Jeff Elliott, the majority of the data collection phase of the aerial survey will be undertaken during the next few months and the final products from the aerial survey are scheduled to be delivered to HKND by March 2016.

John Murray, Senior Advisor of HKND Group, suggested that the survey results will provide baseline data, enable detailed planning and allow optimization of the project.

Furthermore, the survey will allow assessment of geological risks such as seismic activity, tsunami, volcanic eruption, landslide, slope stability and liquefaction.

“The results of the aerial survey will be a valuable asset to the country”, stated Kwok Wai Pang, Executive Vice President of HKND Group.

Kwok Wai Pang also stressed that the aerial survey is one of the most important pre-work projects. Commencement of such a high-standard aerial survey serves as clear evidence that the Nicaragua Canal Project is progressing steadily.

HKND Group press release


Imagy by HKND Group