Sarens powerhouse lifts weight in highest category at
INEOS Project ONE yard
A feat of Flemish craftsmanship in action at Flanders' largest industrial construction site
- INEOS Project ONE site reaches peak activity with integration of plant modules and start of commissioning programme end of this summer
- Today, 'Strong Sofie,' one of Sarens' most powerful cranes, will receive its christening at the Project ONE construction site
- Flemish Minister-President Matthias Diependaele takes part in demonstration of Sarens’ giga crane
2025: Project ONE grows vertically
INEOS' yard for the construction of a new ethane cracker in the port of Antwerp is running at full speed. Now that the underground and civil works in Antwerp are complete and the module yards abroad are being phased out, the focus this year will be on integrating the plant modules that are steadily arriving by ship. As a result, the site is swiftly taking on the appearance of a chemical plant.
Sarens, partner for heavy lifting and transport work
Safely unloading the giant plant parts from the ship and then transporting them from the quay wall to the foundations on site is a delicate task.
To manage this, INEOS has entered into a partnership with Sarens. They are responsible for all lifting and heavy transport work, including road and sea transport, modular assembly and precision installations. Sarens has assembled a team of 300 employees for this purpose.
On the Project ONE site, Sarens is deploying an impressive arsenal of resources, most notably a fleet of cranes ranging from 40-tonne telescopic cranes up to a 2,500-tonne crawler crane (the largest crawler crane in Europe), barges and auxiliary equipment such as forklifts, telescopic cranes and mobile tower cranes. To remove the various modules from the ship and transport them to their final destination, SPMTs (Self Propelled Modular Trailers) are also used. The distance between the quay and the final destination on the plot can be more than 1 kilometer. These special vehicles are remotely controlled and their operation is, of course, a job for experts.
Carl Sarens, Director Technical Solutions, Projects & Engineering:
"It is unique that we can carry out this assignment in Belgium. Such large-scale and complex industrial projects are more likely to take place outside of Europe nowadays. Our team is therefore particularly proud that we can deploy the best of our craftsmanship in our home market. INEOS has challenged us with handling extreme loads: most recently for unloading and transporting furnace modules more than 60 meters high and weighing up to 6,000 tons. An operation we carried out with a 224-axle SPMT configuration."
Sarens flagship gets christening at Project ONE site
One of the eye-catchers on the Project ONE site is a Sarens giant crawler crane that came to the site straight from the Liebherr factory. This is the so-called 'LR12500-1.0' which, with a lifting capacity of 2,500 tons and a total boom reach of up to 200 meters (the equivalent of 2 soccer fields stacked on top of each other), is the most powerful in its segment and belongs to the absolute top of Sarens' crane fleet. The counterweight of this giant crane alone commands awe because it amounts to 1400 tons.
Construction of this "crane colossus" on site takes between 3 and 4 weeks due to its proportions. Indeed, it is crucial that every bolt, joint and hydraulic system is precisely installed so that the crane can handle the heaviest and most complex lifting tasks.
This crane will soon be performing a sequence of technical feats manoevering colossal 100+ metre-long and 600+ tonne columns into final positions within the growing cracker complex.
Today, Flemish Minister-President Matthias Diependaele visited the Project ONE site to observe the crane and the progress of the works. He also climbed into the crane cabin to briefly drive it under the supervision of Sarens. For the occasion, the crane was also solemnly christened by the site's local fire crew. 'She' was given the name of one of Sarens' family members: 'Strong Sofie'.
“This impressive display of family entrepreneurial spirit with international innovation flair is taking Project One's construction work to unprecedented heights. This record investment by INEOS in the Port of Antwerp demonstrates that Flanders is renowned not only for its craftsmanship and innovative spirit, but also for its entrepreneurial climate,” says Flemish Minister-President Matthias Diependaele. “We have the people, the talent, and the infrastructure to make such large-scale investments a reality.’ “
Mass mobilisation
Activity levels at the Antwerp site of Project ONE will peak this year with more than 2,500 employees at the site. Today, the construction of the cracker and supporting infrastructure in Antwerp is over two thirds complete. In the first quarter of this year, 79 modules have already been delivered by ship; 9 more shipments are planned for the rest of the year, including for the largest process modules that will arrive from Abu Dhabi starting in the summer.
A major milestone is scheduled for late summer when the site will be fully powered up for the first time with the activation of our power intake station. This "main electricity box" of Project ONE distributes the incoming 380 000 Volt power to the cracker's substations. The total network of power lines laid for this purpose covers a whopping 1,200 kilometers. As the crow flies this amounts to the distance you travel from Project ONE's ethane tank to St. Peter's Square in Rome…
John McNally, CEO of INEOS Project ONE noted:
"Work on the Project ONE site is reaching a peak. A symbolic moment was the arrival of the first cracker furnaces in January. Meanwhile, the heart of our cracker is complete, now that all six furnaces are on their foundations. At the current pace, we will reach mechanical completion of the plant before the end of 2026. Now that construction is progressing well, we are also fully preparing the commissioning of the plant, where we thoroughly test all parts of the plant for their functioning, according to strict quality and safety requirements. A first commissioning milestone is planned for late summer, when power intake for the site will be commissioned for the first time. Full plant startup is planned in early 2027."
ABOUT INEOS Project ONE
Project ONE is an investment by INEOS in the Antwerp chemical sector for the construction of an ethane cracker. The investment amounts to over four billion euros, making it the largest investment in European chemistry in more than 20 years. The advanced plant will produce ethylene, one of the most widely used basic chemicals worldwide and an essential building block for a variety of products, found in medical applications, textiles, computer and smartphone casings, household appliances, packaging to preserve food longer and cosmetics. It is also used in lightweight parts for cars and wind turbines, insulation materials for the construction industry or pipes for transporting drinking water.
Project ONE will raise the standard for the chemical sector in Europe by deploying best available techniques. In particular, the investment will pioneer energy efficiency and have a carbon footprint less than half that of the 10% best steam crackers in Europe.
Early 2027 is targeted as the start of operation. The investment in Lillo will create 450 direct jobs and thousands of indirect jobs. At the peak of construction work, some 2,500 workers will be employed at the Antwerp site.
More information : https://project-one.ineos.com
ABOUT SARENS
Sarens is the global leader and reference in crane rental, heavy lifting, and engineered transportation services. With state-of-the-art equipment, value engineering, and one of the world's largest inventories of cranes, transporters, and specialised rigging equipment, Sarens delivers creative and intelligent solutions to today’s heavy lifting and transport engineering challenges.
With more than 100 entities in 65 countries operating without borders, Sarens is an ideal partner for projects of all sizes. The company currently employs 5,000 highly qualified professionals who are ready to meet the needs of clients worldwide across all market sectors.
https://www.sarens.com/
Press contact
INEOS
Nathalie Meert, Communications & External Relations Manager INEOS Belgium
nathalie.meert@ineos.com, M +32 491 35 91 67
SARENS
Sarah Dehollander, Marketing Lead SP
sarah.dehollander@sarens.com, M +32 471 63 50 98