deugro delivers final shipment for INEOS Project One’s sustainable ethane cracker

The company transported 85,500 cubic meters of cargo from China, UAE, and Oman

Global logistics firm deugro has successfully delivered the final critical components for INEOS Project One, Europe’s most sustainable ethane cracker, completing a massive logistical feat at the Port of Antwerp. In total, the company transported 85,500 cubic meters of cargo from China, UAE, and Oman.

The project marks a major milestone in Europe’s transition to sustainable petrochemical production, showcasing cutting-edge logistics and engineering expertise on a global scale.

The first shipments from China delivered 52,600 cubic meters, including ten oversized storage bullets weighing up to 738 metric tons and stretching nearly 50 meters long. Subsequent shipments from the UAE and Oman added 33,000 cubic meters of heavy lift components, including a 331-metric-ton marine control building, a 404-metric-ton equipment room, substation units up to 438 metric tons, and a 338-metric-ton local equipment room. The final—and largest—unit, a staggering 1,040-metric-ton substation measuring over 67 meters long, travelled on the vessel Rolldock Storm. 

deugro UK acted as the project control tower, assembling a cross-disciplinary team of project managers, transport engineers, and chartering experts from six countries. Most components were loaded via RO/RO, requiring careful planning of SPMT configurations and quay-side ramping. The 67-meter substation alone involved two SPMT trains with 50-axle lines each and nearly 75 meters of quay packing to ensure safe transfer. 

Giovanni Nigro, Senior Naval Architect at dteq, explained the technical complexity: “Even loading by means of two SPMT lines with 50 axles each represented a challenge, in conjunction with a particular fendering system at Hamriyah Port in UAE which didn’t allow the vessel’s ramp to get directly in line with the quay surface. 

"To overcome this obstacle, a ramping structure of about 75 meters, composed of a mix of steel and azobe wood mats, was built on the quay to allow for a smooth driving of the axles on board. An additional operational and engineering challenge was the conditions of the cargo hold of a pre-loaded barge. This barge, an integral part of the vessel loading equipment, required an extensive assessment in terms of local and global strength, besides proper ballasting considerations during loading and securing.” 

On the substation, Nigro added: "Such modules require a very accurate evaluation of eventual deflections transferred by the vessel onto the module, and the appropriate engineering to mitigate it. For the same reason, a different securing solution was engineered, consisting of transversal and longitudinal bracings that ‘choked’ the cargo inside the cargo hold while still allowing it to displace vertically and avoid structural stress generated from vessel deflections.” 

Marco Lauwrier, deugro Country Manager Benelux, emphasized the hands-on challenge: "Acting as the on-site project manager, coordinating the delivery of over 85,600 cubic meters of critical components from China, UAE and Oman to the Port of Antwerp was no small feat. As intensive as the planning process was, being on the quayside during execution is the real differentiator, allowing for quick thinking and providing solutions as the loading environment constantly changes on these large-scale global projects.”