In March 2016, SOMO and Both Ends published "Dredging in the Dark".  As the report summary states: "Two Dutch dredging companies and the Dutch government played a major role in the recent effort to widen and deepen the Suez Canal. SOMO and Both ENDS analysed whether the Dutch companies and government abided by international standards for responsible business conduct during their involvement in the Suez project. The conclusion is clear: the Dutch dredgers and the government prioritized commercial interests over human rights and failed to uphold international social and environmental standards."

Business & Human Rights Resource Centre invited the four companies involved in the Challenge Consortium (Van Oord and Boskalis of the Netherlands, National Marine Dredging of UAE and Jan de Nul of Belgium) to respond, as well as the Dutch Export Credit Agency Atradius to respond to the report.  Atradius' response, a joint response by Van Oord and Boskalis and a follow-up statement by SOMO and Both Ends are below.  We will indicate whether National Marine Dredging and Jan de Nul also respond.