February 13 - Altius has transported various heavy and over-dimensional cargoes for the ongoing development and expansion of Total's Optara refinery in Antwerp, Belgium.
Altius handled the shipment of units from Italy and Portugal by coaster vessels, as well as some heavier modules by heavy lift vessel from Gijón and Avilés.
One of the heaviest cargoes delivered to Antwerp was a fractionator weighing 224 tonnes and measuring 57 m long, which was transported from factory to quay by conventional trailers, before being loaded onto a vessel using the ship's gear. On arrival in Belgium, the cargo was unloaded onto SPMTs for delivery to site.
A 133-tonne and 17 m long separator was also delivered by Altius from Melnik port in the Czech Republic to Antwerp onboard a self-propelled barge.
Altius said that it expects the transportation project to end some time in February or March of this year, with the delivery of five modules, the heaviest weighing 187 tonnes, from Middlesbrough in the UK; and the arrival of a 348-tonne separator from Avilés, Spain.
