INEOS has received the first of the final two modules needed to complete its €5bn Project ONE ethane cracker at the Port of Antwerp.
The 6,920-tonne module arrived aboard Ji Xu Xiang 88 after its voyage from Abu Dhabi was delayed for several months by the war in Iran and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
The ships transporting the two modules passed through the strait during a one-week ceasefire in mid-June. They reached Antwerp six weeks later after travelling through the Suez Canal.
Standing 55 m high, the module is heavier than the Project ONE furnaces delivered to the Port of Antwerp last year.
The second and final module weighs 7,200 tonnes and is expected to arrive shortly. Its delivery will provide the remaining module required for the cracker installation.
Ji Xu Xiang 88 will remain alongside the quay while workers remove the steel structures used to protect the module during the overseas voyage. The unit will then be transferred into position within the plant.
Project ONE was developed using a modular construction approach because of space constraints at the Antwerp site. Process modules, cracker components and pipe racks were assembled overseas while civil engineering and foundation work proceeded in Antwerp.
Activity at the final construction site in Abu Dhabi was phased out during the first quarter of the year. The remaining work is now concentrated in Antwerp.
Around 2,500 people from approximately 80 contractors are working at the site. More than 14 million man-hours have been completed to date.
With civil engineering work completed and the final modules being installed, construction is focused on mechanical, electrical and instrumentation activities.
Current work includes the installation of 1,250 km of instrumentation and electrical cables and leak testing. The administrative headquarters, control room and warehouses are also being completed.
A permanent electricity supply was established during the first quarter following the commissioning of the 380 kV main substation. This enables commissioning activities to begin as individual subsystems reach mechanical completion.
During commissioning, each subsystem will be tested to confirm that it meets the project’s safety, design and quality requirements.
Mechanical completion of the full site is scheduled for next summer. INEOS plans to start the cracker in the second half of 2027.
