Discover the commitments behind the Canal
Find here the structural commitments of the Société du Canal Seine-Nord Europe and the project partners.
Discover the commitments behind the Canal
Find here the structural commitments of the Société du Canal Seine-Nord Europe and the project partners.
For Transport better: more ecological, more economical! The Seine-Nord Europe Canal will be able to accommodate large barges (measuring up to 185 meters long and 11,40 meters wide and capable of carrying up to 4,400 tons of goods). This represents a small revolution in the sector, as the current Canal du Nord, much narrower, now constitutes a real bottleneck between the Seine and Oise river basins and the European waterway network.
It is estimated that, a few years after its commissioning, the Seine-Nord Europe Canal will transport approximately 17 million tons of goods per year and reduce road traffic by 1 million heavy goods vehicles in France, and even by 2,3 million across Europe on the Seine-Scheldt waterway. The result is a carbon footprint that demonstrates, over 40 years, a saving of more than 50 million tons of CO2. This is one way to address the climate and energy challenges of the 21st century.
For more information, Go to the Canal Essentials section
The Seine-Scheldt network is a program of works launched in France and Belgium to develop river transport in Europe. It involves regenerate, expand, modernize existing waterways et building a new river infrastructure: the Seine-Nord Europe Canal.
Thanks to this work, the Seine-Scheldt network, spanning 1 kilometers of rivers and canals suitable for large vessels, will foster the growth of waterway freight transport. It addresses a clear priority of the European Union's transport policy: decarbonization through a modal shift of freight traffic, currently predominantly by road, towards an energy-efficient mode of transport. With CO100 emissions2 with 3 to 5 times lower costs per tonne transported compared to road transport (depending on the size of the boats), river transport is an environmentally friendly mode of transport.
Thus, it will contribute to the sustainable development of the European Union by supporting the major transformations underway in member states: the future of mobility, the ecological transition, and reindustrialization. In this respect, the Seine-Escaut network is a key lever within the framework of the European Green Deal.
To learn more about the Seine-Escaut Network, visit the website
The cost of any project can change depending on factors such as inflation, scheduling, and context. Therefore, it is reassessed at key stages of its progress.
Several factors explain this evolution: the project schedule, inflation, and the evolution of standards.
Thus, the target cost of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal has been reassessed following the obtaining of the latest environmental authorization at €7,3 billion in current rates for a higher quality project, in line with current requirements which are more ambitious than 10 years ago in terms of safety and environment.
Safety is the top priority for the Seine-Nord Europe Canal Company and its partners. The goal: to create a safe and durable structure that ensures the safety of everyone involved – construction workers, local residents, and future users. Every structure on the Seine-Nord Europe Canal is designed, built, and operated to guarantee stability and long-term durability. Stringent measures are implemented to anticipate hydraulic, geological, seismic, and meteorological risks.
To learn more about the structure's safety, go directly to the dedicated page. Infrastructure security
During the initial project studies in the 1990s, several route options were analyzed, including upgrading the Canal du Nord to the required gauge. This solution was rejected because it would have required the reconstruction of 19 locks, 2 tunnels, and the raising of approximately fifty bridges, resulting in a very high economic and environmental cost, for a performance inferior to that of the selected route.
The Seine-Nord Europe Canal, however, reuses approximately 8 km of the former Canal du Nord right-of-way where relevant. The final route also allows for the repair of some of the impacts left by the 19th-century structure, notably by restoring the Tortille, a river in the Somme whose source had been altered during the construction of the Canal du Nord.
The device Job channel "Managed by France Travail, this system lists unsolicited applications for job opportunities on the Canal construction sites. Job offers from the companies building the Canal are available on the website in the Employment Canal section.
If no offers are currently available, we invite you to submit your application now to the following address: canal-emploi@francetravail.fr .
Other mechanisms within the Grand Chantier initiative can help you:
Get trained! If you're interested in training for construction trades, the "Canal Formation" program, managed by the Hauts-de-France Region, identifies the most suitable training courses to meet your needs, in line with the specific requirements of companies and their subcontractors. The program provides tools to help you access training opportunities in your region and guide you in the best possible direction! Visit the dedicated Canal Formation page to learn more: Canal Formation - Canal Seine-Nord Europe
To find out about all the professions involved in the construction projects, consult the expected skills kit.
Join us! Are you looking to enter the workforce through work integration programs? The "Canal Solidaire" program, managed by the Departments, can help you. In the coming years, 300 to 600 positions are available for you on the Canal construction site, across some thirty different trades. The Grand Chantier initiative offers employment and training opportunities through Canal Solidaire and a structured pathway to employment within the framework of Work Integration Social Enterprises (CIAE). To learn more: Solidarity Canal - Canal Seine-Nord Europe
It is estimated that around 6,000 people will work on the Canal's construction at its peak. Approximately 3,000 jobs will be created specifically for the Canal. This is an estimate of the number of direct jobs, calculated based on recent linear infrastructure projects.
To be informed of job opportunities available on the construction site: Canal Jobs - Canal Seine-Nord Europe
To provide accommodation for workers on the Seine-Nord Europe Canal construction site, you can use the Canal Accueil scheme, managed by the State in partnership with Action Logement and the Departmental Housing Information Agencies of Hauts-de-France. This scheme identifies and mobilizes available accommodation options in the region.
Housing Action is a key player in housing policy serving businesses and employees, with two main missions:
ADIL of Hauts-de-France They support individuals who wish to offer a housing solution. The objective: to support residents, professionals, and businesses affected by the construction of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal.
You can contact Action Logement or the ADIL of your department directly via the page Channel Home
The teams from the Seine-Nord Europe Canal Company are present at numerous events throughout the Hauts-de-France region. To find out about these events, visit the "Meet Us" pages on the regional mini-sites:
The Seine-Nord Europe Canal Company, the project owner, is receiving a high volume of requests for site visits. Due to safety concerns, the progress of the work, and our capacity to provide support, we are unfortunately unable to accommodate all of these requests. At this stage, we are only able to provide visits for institutional partners (local elected officials, socio-economic stakeholders who have supported the project for many years), residents living near the construction site, or during operations related to the major construction project initiative.
SCSNE is working with tourism stakeholders in the Hauts-de-France region to structure the promotion of the construction project as it ramps up in the coming years. This will make it easier to offer tours of the Canal construction sites.
The Canal website regularly tracks the progress of construction projects in the territories. Visit the mini-websites dedicated to your region :
And to receive this information directly to your email inboxSubscribe to the newsletters that interest you: https://www.canal-seine-nord-europe.fr/contact/inscription-aux-infos-du-canal/
Construction work is starting gradually along the entire route. News and information related to the works are regularly posted on the Canal's website: photos of the construction sites, completed structures, practical information about the work near you, upcoming meetings and appointments...
To find out more about construction projects near you, Visit the mini-websites dedicated to your region :
Why do the roads near construction sites need to be cleaned?
- Works companies plan to regularly circulate a sweeper on construction sites to clean the roads after the passage of trucks. This regular cleaning of the roadway ensures the safety of road users, which is a priority for the SCSNE.
How are the roads cleaned?
- The water used by these sweepers must not contain too much suspended matter (sediment) to avoid, in particular, the clogging of the sweeper nozzles and to ensure its cleaning mission.
- As far as possible and as a matter of priority, the water used is non-potable water. For example, companies can take advantage of artificial ponds on the construction site, which accumulate runoff (rainwater). Over time, the water settles enough to allow impurities to settle to the bottom of the water. This allows companies to use the water from these basins.
- In the absence of a non-potable resource, companies have to use water from the urban network to avoid creating water withdrawal points. Drinking water catchments are carried out under supervised safety conditions and with the authorization of the network manager (SAUR).
Could we use water from the Canal Latéral à l'Oise instead?
- The answer is no, mainly for security reasons.
- Canal water contains a percentage of silt. This mud would settle on the roads, and after a few passages, the roadway would become slippery.
No, for safety and environmental reasons it is not possible.
Depending on your location, you can send an email to the SCSNE reference teams near you:
The Seine-Nord Europe Canal plays a major role in the ecological transition by encouraging a a more environmentally friendly mode of transportIndeed, by developing river transport for the exchange of goods, it makes it possible to significantly reduce CO₂ emissions: river transport offers (depending on the size of the boats) a carbon footprint 3 to 5 times lower to that of road transport and consumes 3 to 4 times less energy for the same quantity of goods transported.
Projections regarding the modal shift from road to waterway indicate that the Seine-Nord Europe Canal will contribute, within a few years of its commissioning, to removing approximately 1 million trucks per year from French roads, thereby reducing air pollution, noise pollution, and traffic congestion. This shift will increase as traffic on the Canal grows over time.
To learn more, visit the dedicated page. the environment and the ecological transition.
The management of the Canal's water is based on principles of economy, resource preservation and resilience to climate change.
Have you seen these yellow, green or red nets near the Canal construction sites? They serve to delimit the different types of spaces which must be preserved or be the subject of particular treatment. The red nets surround invasive alien species (EEA) whose cutting, if necessary, follows a protocol that helps prevent their spread. The yellow nets demarcate fragile wetlands, and green fillets, protected natural areas, for fauna or flora.
The Canal was designed within an extremely rigorous framework that ensures respect for the environment, in particular through the application of the "Avoid-Reduce-Compensate" approach. The measures related to this approach have been conceived and their relevance assessed by numerous experts, including State Services and the National Council for Nature Protection.
monitoring measures are then planned to assess the effectiveness of the reduction measures implemented at each stage of the Canal's construction.
During the construction phase, monitoring will aim to verify that companies properly take environmental issues into account and correctly implement the avoidance and reduction measures planned.
After the Canal is put into service, monitoring measures will also be carried out to ensure the effectiveness of the reduction measures over time.
Once completed, they are placed under the management of a competent structure in the field which is responsible - over a period of 30 years - for implementing the management plan defined to achieve the environmental objectives.
Protected species have already reappeared: the corncrake, a protected bird species that is critically endangered, was detected in the spring of 2025 on an environmental compensation site of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal. A remarkable and very encouraging discovery for the natural world. The Great Berle, a protected plant species considered "endangered" in the Hauts-de-France region, was spotted in the fall of 2025 at the Morlincourt environmental compensation site in the Oise region, on a wetland rehabilitated in 2022 by the Société du Canal Seine-Nord Europe (SCSNE). An encouraging discovery that testifies to the quality of the improvements made on the site.
Once the Seine-Nord Europe Canal is operational, its management will be handled by Voies navigables de France (VNF). The Société du Canal Seine-Nord Europe (SCSNE), a public body created specifically for the project, is only involved during the design and construction phases. Upon completion, it will transfer the canal to VNF for its operation, upkeep, and maintenance, as is the case for the entire national waterway network.
With the Seine-Nord Europe Canal, growth forecasts are around 40% of river traffic in France, with a fivefold increase on the axis between the Seine and the North.
Forecasts predict consolidated traffic on the Canal will reach 17 million tonnes between 5 and 10 years after its opening. Consolidated traffic includes all goods transported on the Seine-Nord Europe Canal, even over short distances. Transit traffic, meaning goods traveling along the entire 107 km of the Canal, is estimated at 12 to 13 million tonnes over the same timeframe, compared to the 2 to 3 million tonnes currently transported on the Canal du Nord. Given the performance gap between the current route and the future Seine-Scheldt network, this quantitative leap is plausible.
Traffic forecasts, updated again in 2021, indicate a 4-point decline in road transport's modal share between 5 and 10 years after the Canal's commissioning, and a 7-point decline in the longer term. The Seine-Nord Europe Canal is enabling a reversal of this trend on one of Europe's most important transport corridors.
Traffic studies, updated in 2021, show that after the Seine-Nord Europe Canal becomes operational, road traffic is expected to gradually decrease. A drop of 4 percentage points is projected within 5 to 10 years, followed by a further 7 percentage points in the longer term. This is a significant change, as it runs counter to trends observed over the past several decades.
In practical terms, this means far fewer trucks on the roads: the largest barge that will be able to navigate the Seine-Nord Europe Canal will be able to transport the equivalent of 220 trucks at once. This represents approximately one million fewer trucks per year. With the commissioning of the Seine-Scheldt network, river transport is expected to see significant growth, with nearly 30% more traffic a few years after the Canal opens.
Once operational, the Seine-Nord Europe Canal is required to comply with regulations concerning noise from land transport infrastructure. The regulatory thresholds are:
The decibel A, dB(A), is the unit of measurement for sound in this weighted form. The perceived sound is expressed by the sign
dB(A). The following scale allows for the characterization of noise levels.
The studies verified that these regulatory thresholds were not exceeded at any point along the Canal. The results are presented in the impact study Update. It turns out that boats operating on the network emit noise far below the current regulatory threshold.
A few years after its commissioning, the bulk of the traffic (80%) by tonnage transported on the Seine-Nord Europe Canal will be heavy goods (cereals, construction materials, chemicals, metallurgy, recycling products…).
However, the transport of goods by container (mostly consumer goods) is expected to grow proportionally over the years, according to forecasts:
The Seine-Nord Europe Canal represents a major opportunity for French barge operators, after decades of underinvestment in the waterway network. It will allow a a quantitative and qualitative leap in flows, with growth in river traffic in France estimated at nearly 40% according to forecasts, and a four- to five-fold increase on the North-South axis. This new competitiveness, combined with opening up the Seine basinwill promote the redistribution of raw material and merchandise flows and contribute to the relocation of certain production and logistics activities in France and Europe.
The Canal also offers a visibility and added value for river transportThe media coverage of the construction site and the opening of the Canal will highlight the professions in the sector, strengthening their attractiveness and facilitating recruitment in a sector that needs it.
Finally, the project creates financial and investment opportunitiesThe growth prospects and the "green" dimension of river transport will encourage banks to finance the purchase of larger boats and innovative solutions that improve environmental performance.
To support this dynamic, Entreprises Fluviales de France (E2F) and SCSNE signed a charter in 2024 to support companies in the river sector. Find out more
Along the Seine-Nord Europe Canal route, boaters will have access to:
The Canal will therefore offer barge operators infrastructure, logistics services and a seamless connection to the European network, making river transport more competitive. To learn more about inland ports
The Canal locks were designed to offer a high level of reliability and availability, with dimensions of 195 meters long and 12,5 meters wide, suitable for the European river fleet.
In order to limit water consumption, basins attached to the lock will save a good portion of the water during the emptying of the lock to be reused during the next filling.
Innovative construction techniques will also be implemented. The walls of some locks, called lock walls, will be thinner and will rest on substantial blocks of silt extracted on site. These natural materials will be stabilized through a precise mixture of lime and binders.
Finally, the locks will be fully integrated into their surroundings and contribute to the creation of new landscapes. Three of them (in Noyon, Allaines, and Oisy-le-Verger) are designed to welcome the public and become points of interest on tourist routes in the Hauts-de-France region. In Noyon, for example, the lock, lined with 750 trees, will blend into the historical setting of the old medieval town and its cathedral.
The future of the Canal du Nord and the Canal Latéral à l'Oise after the commissioning of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal is the subject of discussions between Voies navigables de France (VNF) and local stakeholders, in conjunction with the Canal Company. This is one aspect of the territorial development contracts signed between numerous partners to ensure the successful integration of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal.
The Seine-Nord Europe Canal Company has placed logistical performance at the heart of its construction contracts. From the initial consultation stage, bids are evaluated against a modal shift criterion, while the contracts include targets for consolidating flows tailored to the scope and needs of each project. Successful bidders must implement a "Logistics Management Plan for Supply and Removal" to achieve the defined modal shift rate. To this end, 11 construction or renovation wharves are being built along existing canals—the Oise Lateral Canal, the Canal du Nord, and the Canal de la Sensée—to facilitate the transshipment of construction materials. Two are nearing completion in Aubencheul-au-Bac (Nord) and Allaines (Somme), and five more wharves will be renovated or built during 2026.
To learn more about the impact of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal on the Canal du Nord and other existing canals, you can consult document D5 of the environmental authorization file from Passel to Aubencheul-au Bac.
Until early 2031, navigation between Belgium and the Seine via the Canal du Nord will remain possible. From early 2031, north/south transit through the Canal du Nord will be closed to allow for the completion of the CSNE (Seine-Nord Europe Canal) project in the sections where it is being built on the existing canal's right-of-way. However, an alternative route will be available for pleasure craft (for example, via the Saint-Quentin Canal).
Following the opening of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal, pleasure craft will be able to navigate the waterway, provided the pilot holds a valid license. The project also includes improvements to the waiting areas at the locks, as well as within the lock chambers (closer placement of floating bollards). Furthermore, the Canal project incorporates two recreational facilities in the Somme region: a marina in Saint-Christ-Briost and a port in Allaines. These two infrastructures represent an opportunity for local tourism, both for private boating and cruising.
Naturally, once the Seine-Nord Europe Canal is in operation, there will no longer be any possible transit via the Canal du Nord since some sections will be redeveloped.
To learn more about the different existing canal improvements, you can consult Part D5 of the environmental permit.
The Canal Company, as part of the Seine-Nord Europe Canal project, will create more than 200 km of riverbanks that will be accessible to walkersLocal stakeholders have been working for several years on developing these riverbanks, creating pedestrian walkways and cycle paths that connect with existing routes. This will be particularly true, for example, around the Somme Canal Bridge.
The Seine-Nord Europe Canal is a large-gauge canal primarily dedicated to the transport of goods.
Access to the Canal will however be possible for river tourism activities: passenger boats, private pleasure boating for holders of a boat license.
Tourism partners in Hauts-de-France, as well as Voies navigables de France (VNF), are already supporting tourism operators in their planning for a river and canal-based tourism offer that matches the potential of the new link.
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