On its maiden voyage, the company’s latest new building MV “Lone” performed SAL’s heaviest lift ever. With its lifting capacity of 2 x 1,000 ts SWL, the vessel loaded 8 reactors weighing up to 1,719 ts and measuring 45 x 8 x 8 m.
As part of the RPLC Deep Conversion Project Phase II in Venezuela, these massive reactors were manufactured in Japan. They are destined for the PDVSA Puerto La Cruz refinery in Venezuela where they facilitate the conversion of heavy and extra heavy crude oil into high quality refined fuel products. The project was awarded to SAL by the Dutch heavy lift specialist Mammoet Logistics BV.
On its voyage, the MV “Lone” first called the Japanese port of Higashi Harima where two hydrocracking reactors were loaded, and continued on to Muroran to take six further hydrotreating reactors on board. From Muroran the vessel sailed through the Panama Canal directly on to the port of Chaguaramas in Trinidad where the reactors are temporarily stored before being carried to their final destination of Puerto La Cruz in Venezuela. After careful preparation, the reactors were discharged in record time: the heaviest reactor of 1,719 ts was set ashore in only 2.5 hours.
[mappress] Source: Sal-heavylift, June 21, 2011