Enormous components of Ineos’ ethane cracker have arrived at the Port of Antwerp, including two cracking furnaces that will generate heat.
These first two furnaces are among the largest industrial shipments to ever enter the port. Weighing 6,000 tonnes, they stand 60 metres tall and 32 metres.
They were built in Thailand and took eight weeks to reach Antwerp, travelling around the Cape of Good Hope instead of through the Suez Canal.
Biggest European chemical-sector project in 25 years
The ship transporting the furnaces alone cost €150 million. It is the fourth vessel to deliver parts for Project One, Ineos’ new chemical plant. Sixteen more ships are expected this year, with one already on its way.
The project represents an investment of more than €4 billion – €3 billion of it already spent – making it the largest investment in the European chemical sector in the past 25 years, according to Ineos CEO John McNally.
Currently, the site employs 1,700 to 1,800 workers, a number expected to rise to 2,500.
'There is no turning back'
Media were invited to film the arrival of the massive furnaces from a boat, although dense fog made it difficult. Antwerp’s Port Alderman Johan Klaps was also present.
The cracking furnaces are the core of the chemical plant. Ethane gas will be heated there to 900 degrees Celsius in the presence of steam to produce ethylene.
Ineos conveyed a clear message: Project One is underway and progressing as planned. “It’s happening, it’s all real,” McNally exclaimed on the boat. “There is no turning back; this is a one-way road to success.”
Decision on environmental permit by Friday
Despite ongoing legal challenges related to the project, McNally appeared unconcerned. The Antwerp provincial government will make a decision on Ineos’ application for a new environmental permit by Friday at the latest.
Opposition from climate and environmental groups persists, but McNally indicated that construction is proceeding as planned. He argued that opposing all investments in petrochemicals is impractical, likening it to expecting cars to be driven until they fall apart instead of replacing them with new models.
Port CEO Jacques Vandermeiren, also present on the boat, supported Ineos’ stance.
“Ethylene, which will be produced here, is essential for making solar panels, wind turbine blades, lightweight materials for cars, and packaging for the food and medical industries,” he said. “If we don’t produce it in the most environmentally friendly way, it might be made less sustainably on other continents.”
