A team of Manitowoc crawler cranes is at the heart of building the €1 billion LNG terminal in Dunkirk, France. The facility will be the largest terminal of its kind in Europe, having the capacity to hold 13 billion cbm of gas; equivalent to 20 percent of France and Belgium’s annual natural gas consumption. Once complete, the site will consist of three LNG storage tanks, as well as marine structures and buildings providing connections to French and Belgian gas transmission networks.

 

The Manitowoc crawler cranes, which have capacities of 250-400 tonnes, are working up to 24 hours a day in a difficult coastal environment to complete the ambitious project on time.

 

They have proved their worth, performing well at the demanding job site, said Julian Agostini, business development director at Dutch crane specialist Crane House. “Working on such an expansion project asks a lot of these cranes, plus the seafront location means they are battered by strong winds and challenging weather,” he explained.

 

“But the Manitowoc crawlers haven’t let us down – they have been working continuously to a very high standard, and we are very impressed by their versatility and ease of use. They are able the ideal solution for a variety of demanding tasks.”

 

Most recently, the crawlers built the terminal jetty, for which they primarily poured concrete using specially designed concrete buckets. They have been working double and triple shifts, often lifting continuously for days.

 

The LNG project, which is being delivered by a consortium led by Vinci, is due to complete at the end of 2015. Two crawlers remain working at the job site, which is among the largest construction sites under development in France.

 

 

18th November 2014