HCB Magazine June 2022

M O N T H LY

J U N E

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GROUND PLAN TERMINAL OPERATORS GET SET FOR FUTURE DEMAND PATTERNS WELCOME BACK TO THE REAL WORLD JOINT MEETING MAKES LATE CHANGES WHAT’S NEEDED FOR COMBINED TRANSPORT

T H E

I N F O R M AT I O N

D A N G E R O U S

S O U R C E

G O O D S

F O R

T H E

I N T E R N AT I O N A L

P R O F E S S I O N A L

S I N C E

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UP FRONT 01

EDITOR’S LETTER

THE VARIOUS REGULATIONS governing the transport of

same thing differently depending on its use, they generally

dangerous goods are, by and large, quite realistic about what

fall under the broader category of ‘dangerous goods in limited

can happen during carriage and what can be expected of those

quantities’. It can be quite interesting to wander around the

involved. They recognise that the same substance, carried by

supermarket and see the LQ labels on boxes being unpacked

different transport modes, in different volumes or in different

in the aisles.

packagings, can present quite varied hazards. And if the worst

While LQ packages are regulated – there are still very specific

happens, there are limits to what can be expected to be done

requirements for packaging, for instance – when you or I bring

to mitigate the acute effects of any spillage before specialist

them home from the shops, we do not have to prove that we

responders arrive.

have had training. It’s all there in black and white: in ADR at

What has become evident lately is that the pace of technological

least it’s at 1.1.3.1(a), where it states that the provisions of ADR

development has accelerated so rapidly and new practices are

do not apply to private individuals carrying dangerous goods

coming into the market, leaving the regulators struggling to

packaged for retail sale and for their personal or domestic use.

keep up. The provisions for lithium batteries, for instance, have

But the world is changing. Personally, I haven’t been to

changed repeatedly as new hazards have emerged – and they

a supermarket since March 2020 – everything is brought to

continue to do so. The regulators are now being presented with

the door by a delivery driver in a livery-emblazoned van and

a whole new set of challenges posed by energy storage systems,

hi-vis vest. Here’s the issue, as COSTHA brought to the table

fuel cells, sodium ion batteries, and so on.

at the recent Joint Meeting and will do so again at the UN

The regulations do recognise the need to exempt from the

Sub-committee later this month: if those LQ goods (mainly

provisions goods packed for retail sale. You and I all have plenty

cleaning products but perhaps also pharmaceuticals and, for

of dangerous goods around the home, mainly in relatively small

the Mrs, beauty products) are being carried by the retailer,

quantities (but often with potentially incompatible products under

for commercial gain, can they then be exempted from the

the sink). But the regulations do not expect the ordinary consumer

provision of ADR by virtue of 1.1.3.1(a)? The regulations

to have dangerous goods training – which is a shame, really, since

certainly do not read like that. And, given the number of people

in Europe at least there is a huge amount of detailed technical

the driver will be delivering to, it is quite likely that the 30 kg

information on the labels required by REACH.

threshold will be exceeded.

Sticking with the transport side of things, though, the

The Joint Meeting seemed a little nonplussed by COSTHA’s

regulations recognise the idea of ‘consumer commodities’ and

proposal but times are changing and perhaps the regulations

provide relief for them – although the term is no longer used as

just weren’t made for this world.

such. Rather, and avoiding the obvious problem of regulating the

Peter Mackay

WWW.HCBLIVE.COM

02

30 YEARS AGO A LOOK BACK TO JUNE 1992

IT WAS THIRTY years ago this month that HCB started its annual review of storage terminal expansion projects, something that has run each year since then. Back in 1992, the survey ran to seven pages – much the same as it does in this issue today, although for some (perhaps neo-colonialist) reason, the listing then began with the UK and ended with the Americas.

Looking through the various reports, there are plenty of names that are long gone: Panocean, Gamatex, Powell Duffryn, Paktank and GATX to name a few. Those terminals have not disappeared, though, they have merely changed hands – or quite often the operating company has changed hands or changed its name. Of course, in 1992 we were not able to offer website links for the companies mentioned – those that advertised gave a phone and fax number, and in many cases a telex address too, but no emails.

As is still the case today, the reason for running the terminal expansion survey was to include it in the issue we sent to the ILTA operating conference and trade show in Houston. In those days it took place at the charming (if often rather damp) Adam’s Mark Hotel on Westheimer, some way from the downtown area (not that downtown

bloc but hampered by severe economic difficulties. EPCA, ever on the ball, had however organised a meeting in Budapest, Hungary in April 1992 to bring together representatives of the chemical industries of both eastern and western Europe, together with their respective logistics partners, to examine the new potential for intra-regional trade. That meeting, we said, “revealed a daunting picture of cultural, economic, legislative and technological disparity,” something that has not entirely vanished – though at least eastern Europe nowadays supplies the west with plentiful (and very welcome) labour in the logistics sector.

HCB had also been out and about in the US, reporting back from the Intermodal Expo 92 show in April in Atlanta, Georgia. It allowed us to continue to examine how the tank container concept was being slowly adopted in North America, although hampered still by the installed base of trucking companies. Some of the issues holding tank containers back were outlined by Arco Alaska, which had chosen to use tank containers to deliver an important chemical across Alaska on behalf of Alyeska Pipeline; Arco’s Steve Silverstein explained that, while they were proving to be a safe and efficient way of delivering

Houston had a lot to offer back then). Despite the venue, there was always a long queue of terminal engineers who came up from their facilities out on the Ship Channel for the exhibition days, despite the air conditioning system’s noisy and largely futile attempt to battle the heat and humidity in the tent outside the hotel.

HCB also mentioned in its expansion survey that it could say little about activities in eastern Europe, newly independent from the Soviet

the product, the fact that operators had still to go on top of the tank to take ullage readings was seen as a problem and reliable level gauges were needed. In addition, there were then no agreed standards for vacuum relief valves and, in general, repair and maintenance was unreliable. That issue in particular remains a problem in expanding the tank container market into emerging economies around the world.

HCB MONTHLY JUNE 2022

UP FRONT 03

CONTENTS VOLUME 43

•

NUMBER 06

UP FRONT

TANKER SHIPPING

REGULATIONS

Letter from the editor

01

Bontemps roulez

The late show

30 Years Ago

02

Tight supply helps Odfjell results

Learning by Training

04

Stop smoking now

On Time, In Full

06

EPS trials carbon capture

27

Joint Meeting makes more changes

44

Change down under 28

Australia plans ADG revision

Electrifying chemical tankers

29

BACK PAGE

News bulletin – tanker shipping

30

Not otherwise specified

56

Conference diary

57

54

Plug and play STORAGE TERMINALS Place your bets Operators invest for future demand

09

Lead from the front Oiltanking carves out Advario

TANKS & LOGISTICS 17

Grow your own Noord Natie continues expansion

Combined transport needs help 18

Sweet music OPW helps with loading arm selection

20

H2 oh!

Gasunie has plans for hydrogen

Industry relieved to have StocExpo back

24

News bulletin – storage terminals

25

Advertising sales Sarah Smith Email: sarah.smith@chemicalwatch.com Tel: +44 (0) 203 603 2113 Publishing Manager Sarah Thompson Email: sarah.thompson@chemicalwatch.com Tel: +44 (0) 20 3603 2103

SO much information IMT wins sulphur tank work

38

News bulletin – tanks and logistics

40 NEXT MONTH The summer number

SAFETY 23

Come on home

Managing Editor Peter Mackay, dgsa Email: peter.mackay@chemicalwatch.com Tel: +44 (0) 7769 685 085

32

22

Four-part harmony Fort Vale’s history in couplings

Seamless delivery

Incident Log

North America focus 42

Gas tanker fleet review Drum and IBC markets

Publishing Assistant Francesca Cotton Designer Petya Grozeva Chief Operating Officer Stuart Foxon Chief Commercial Officer Richard Butterworth

CW Research Ltd Talbot House Market Street Shrewsbury SY1 1LG

ISSN 2059-5735 www.hcblive.com

HCB Monthly is published by CW Research Ltd. While the information and articles in HCB are published in good faith and every effort is made to check accuracy, readers should verify facts and statements directly with official sources before acting upon them, as the publisher can accept no responsibility in this respect. ©2022 CW Research Ltd. All rights reserved

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04 UP FRONT

LEARNING BY TRAINING

by Arend van Campen

INFOWARS ALEX JONES, THE owner and anchor of this controversial alternative media platform named it Infowars; beforehand, little was known about the power of information, either being true or false. I am not telling you to believe Alex or believe the BBC, but make up your own minds. What information actually is and what it is doing to our economy, society and lives is crucial.

We are now able to demonstrate with information theory as a science that goals that do not learn, cannot or should not communicate, will suffer from an information deficit that will prevent them from being achieved. A centrally planned goal such as a QR code surveillance society is not feasible because a non-linear society is complex. The physical law of complexity demonstrated empirically that overall control is impossible.

Complexity is a consequence of a large number of unknown factors, connections and dependencies that nevertheless have a direct impact on us and our society and can only be “controlled” by learning and adapting in real time. These so-called non-linear effects or non-causal stimuli, often from unknown but interrelated and interdependent sources, cannot be controlled with old-fashioned linear control measures such as regulation or compliance, but have to be

If only linear control systems are used, such as law enforcement, QR codes, violence by police or military, they will never be able to cover a non-linear or complex reality that consists of a linear (cause and effect) part, but for a larger part of a non-linear, non-causal or dynamic part, which is much larger (the population). Behaviour of people cannot be determined in advance, because it is constantly changing due to unforeseen and unknowable actions of the entire, also dynamic, network of which it is a part and on which all forms of a society depend. In short, behaviour of the components in a network cannot be predicted. Awareness of such behaviour is necessary, but requires a new, systemic point of view.

Understanding and dealing with complexity is crucial for our survival. Control systems we have tried, such as bank regulation, industrial compliance requirements, trade tariffs, ecological restriction, lockdowns, AI QR Codes, legislation or even wars, have not been able to maintain equilibrium or homeostasis, as nature does. On the contrary, economic, cultural or ecological collapse, poverty, mass migration, crime, biological extinction of species on which we all depend, pollution of soil, water and air are the adverse effects that threaten our lives, including those of that elite/political conspiring class.

‘navigated’ through the use of positive and negative feedback, i.e. information.

We have to tell ourselves, when governments claim that they can control the information stream and decide what is true or false, that we know that it is impossible. A Trusted News Initiative is being launched as a Ministry of Truth and therefore we must ask: Quis custodiet ipsos custodes - who guards the guards?

Nature, business and people work best on cybernetic principles, meaning on the sharing of true information. Please watch this interview: www.youtube.com/watch?v=vtS9wb0YDHo. This is the latest in a monthly series of articles by Arend van Campen, founder of TankTerminalTraining, who can be contacted at arendvc@ tankterminaltraining.com. More information on the company’s activities can be found at www.tankterminaltraining.com.

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

05 UP FRONT

The most modern fleet, shaping a sustainable future

A golden night fairy tale? Anyhow M/T “Corelli” in dry dock, one new build from a series of six new identical chemical tankers of GEFO with a streamlined and optimised underwater hull in order to reduce fuel consumption by up to 30% and lower pollutant emissions by 30%. Each tanker with 12 stainless-steel tanks.

One tanker of the fleet of 150 tankers belonging to GEFO. 26 new build to reduce pollutant emissions.

Which tanker will sail for you?

www.gefo.com

06

ON TIME, IN FULL

BY PAUL GOOCH

LOCAL FOR LOCAL

FOR AS LONG as anyone in the chemical industry can remember, certainly

Global growth has slowed. It is no longer expanding fast enough to absorb

since the end of the Cold War, the industry has depended on growth and

the new capacities that have been put in place in the US Gulf, the Middle

efficiencies of scale to load the increasing numbers of world-scale plants

East and China. Whereas China has traditionally dominated imports of

pushing product into the global marketplace. Demand could be reliably

polyolefins, all the signals are that China is becoming increasingly self-

predicted to be a multiple of GDP. As long as the global population continued

sufficient and will continue to drive internal recycling initiatives, reducing

to grow and large swathes of the population were released from poverty,

the demand for prime product.

there would be an assured growing market for the industry’s products.

Trade wars and increasing nationalistic tendencies have been

Scale was the key to ever-reducing unit costs of production, and

accompanied by customs tariffs and quotas that have undermined

competitively priced freight-rates meant that products could be

established trade lanes and free trade agreements. Re-shoring and near-

economically shipped around the world. Chemical company ecosystems

shoring initiatives are on corporate procurement agendas - although the

also reflected this development. Global Business Units replaced regional

speed of implementation is slow and the challenge of re-shoring from a

organisations. Simplified, standardised global processes became the order

low-cost to high-cost source should not be under-estimated.

of the day. Shipped volumes were aggregated to exert leverage on logistics

The Covid-19 pandemic has mutilated traditional supply chains, through

suppliers. Lean principles were applied to drive further economies.

lockdowns in formerly secure geographies, and causing whiplash effects

The world was in order…

in destination ports and inventories. Transport costs have exploded. The

BUT – things have changed and, in any terms, quite dramatically. A new order is developing.

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

Russian invasion in Ukraine has simply turned the screw even further on global supply chains, disrupting air cargo and overland container

UP FRONT 07

transports, eliminating material supply sources, as well as markets for

with production sites ill-equipped to receive, store and rework returned

western products. However, more importantly, the war in Ukraine has

product, especially in the case of customer-specified products, or products

brought into sharp focus a trend that was already developing: the slowing or

containing a variety of inhibitors or additives.

even reversal of globalisation.

A recent ICIS Chemical Industry podcast, featuring Paul Hodges and John

Chemical assets are often located in clusters, close to deep water, and at a distance from customers. The economics are driven by scale and

Richardson, noted that China, India and many countries in the Middle East

globalisation (powered by low freight rates) and this has reinforced the

and Africa have not implemented sanctions on Russia. Both Paul and John

reality of this ecosystem, particularly for high volume, upstream feedstocks,

predict that the world is morphing into two trading blocks, where the west

polymers and intermediates.

will be cut off from the China polymer market and world-scale crackers will

For supply chain managers in the chemical industry, reverse logistics

become less and less viable, compounded by the impact of electric vehicles

is often their worst nightmare. Transaction systems are not always set

on refinery economics and the resulting lack of liquid feedstocks.

up for returns, so this will probably require manual effort to manage the

Before chemical supply chain managers around the world reach for the

exceptions. Every effort will be made to find an alternative outlet, engaging

Ibuprofen 800, let’s be realistic. The world’s supply chains have developed

customer service and sales in the process, and which may necessitate

over many years, and can’t be ripped apart overnight. There are legal

some commercial consideration. But whatever you do, please don’t bring

contracts in place with customers and suppliers, as well as carriers and

the stuff back!

warehouses. Sourcing and moving chemical products requires extended

However, the industry today is presented with a fresh set of challenges.

qualification and screening processes, and these cannot be easily

The EU Green Deal, the pursuit of Net Zero, the circular economy, etc will

substituted. There are barriers to entry which cannot be ignored.

inevitably cause the industry to rethink conventional business models,

And replacing world-scale crackers with smaller assets based on a

and the impact that this will have on chemical supply chains. Similarly,

completely different set of economics will require new technology and

signals that globalisation is slowing - and in some cases going into reverse

redefined business models. Conventional wisdom about growth and scale

- will eventually impact supply chains, although as we noted above, these

will not simply be thrown over the transom of a chemical parcel tanker.

extended global supply chains have been established over many years and

However, supply chain managers do need to look into their crystal balls

cannot be unpicked overnight.

about the possibility of a trend towards ‘Local-for-Local’ and what this could mean for their future strategic priorities and supply chain network designs.

Product- and volume-driven business strategies may need to be

BUT RECYCLING INITIATIVES ARE HAPPENING NOW! Whereas previous recycling projects have had varying degrees of success,

tempered by local, customer-centric, service-driven offerings that will

we are now witnessing more intense efforts, supported in some cases

present a fresh set of challenges for chemical supply chain managers and

by regulation, to move the agenda forward. The collection of materials

planners, as well as logistics service providers who followed their chemical

and their return to recycling plants has to be local in order to keep the

customers around the world and built their networks to support global

logistics costs to a minimum. Solutions have to be scalable, but at the same

trade flows.

time community-focused, so finding that sweet spot will necessitate the development of new business models, challenging the innovative skills of

DON’T BRING IT BACK Once in a while on a Saturday morning I need to visit the local post office to

the chemical industry and its relative inexperience with returns.

At the same time we should consider including chemical distributors

pick up mail. I never cease to be amazed, or perhaps appalled, by the line

in this equation. Their business is by definition regional, with a strong

of customers waiting to return their Amazon, Zalando, or other e-retailers’

logistics component featuring storage, break-bulk, packaging, and reverse

packages. Having worked a lifetime in supply chains, focused on improving

logistics. So it seems reasonable to expect that they could be part of future

efficiency, productivity and cost performance, this whole process seems

collaborative recycling efforts.

somehow counter-intuitive and environmentally absurd.

But one has to admire the efficiency of the business model and processes

For chemical industry supply chain managers these are exciting times, demanding vision and new skill-sets, an understanding of a new business

that the e-retailers have put in place, recognising that customers are

model, and building relationships with completely different logistics

ordering products unseen. Orders are delivered promptly, the packaging is

partners. Perhaps they should take a leaf out of the e-retailers’ play-book

designed for reuse, the self-adhesive return label may already be included

and see if there are lessons to be learned from their experience.

in the package, and the Post Office seems increasingly set up to handle the explosive growth in volume which has occurred in the past two years as a result of Covid lockdowns. This is reverse logistics on steroids.

Chemical supply chains are mostly designed to be unidirectional,

Paul Gooch The Logical Group GmbH 3 April 2022

WWW.HCBLIVE.COM

STORAGE TERMINALS 09

PLACE YOUR BETS EXPANSIONS • NEW TANKS, NEW PRODUCTS AND NEW TRADE FLOWS ARE MAJOR FEATURES IN THIS YEAR’S ANNUAL REVIEW OF STORAGE TERMINAL EXPANSION AND IMPROVEMENT WORK UPSTREAM OIL AND gas activity continues unabated as the world remains thirsty for product but bulk liquids storage terminal operators around the world are looking further ahead, readying themselves for the inevitable shift in the product mix as the energy transition away from carbon-based fuels begins to take effect. All around the world, established operators, for whom the old hydrocarbon market has been a rich source of business for many decades, are investigating what infrastructure will

within their terminals themselves, but also in the broader value chains, which may include renewable production facilities in far-flung parts of the globe, solar and wind power generation, carbon capture and storage or utilisation, and the waste-to-X sector.

Meanwhile, of course, they have to continue to trim their terminal assets to meet the immediate needs of their customers, especially at a time when supply chains are in flux and there is some degree of a shift in the carriage of product away from tanks towards

be needed to manage future flows of alternative fuels.

Those operators with the financial heft to back several runners in this decarbonisation race are investing heavily not just in the physical assets needed to handle products such as hydrogen, ammonia and methanol in

bulk shipments by tanker. Our annual review of developments is just as long as ever and contains some intriguing projects.

NORTH AMERICA Gibson Energy, Canada Gibson Energy is to expand capacity at its

Edmonton terminal with construction of another 435,000-bbl (70,000 m3) crude oil tank, underpinned by a long-term, take-orpay contract with a new investment-grade customer. “We continue to see the need for additional tankage in Edmonton ahead of the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion entering service and remain in discussions with other shippers regarding further opportunities,” says president/CEO Steve Spaulding. The tank is due in service in early 2023.

Kinder Morgan, California Kinder Morgan plans to establish a renewable diesel hub in southern California, based on its existing Carson terminal in Los Angeles, where it will create renewable storage capacity with connectivity to its own truck rack and to the SFPP pipeline system to supply its Colton and Mission Valley terminals.

Investment at Colton will enable customers to blend renewable diesel with biodiesel, while at Mission Valley it will involve upgrades to truck loading racks. Along with a similar project previously announced for northern California, this will involve investment of more than $50m. Both projects are expected to be placed in service in the first quarter of 2023.

“As refineries are converting to renewable

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10

diesel, we believe this is an attractive opportunity to pivot to the energy fuels of the future in a manner that is consistent with our corporate goals and return criteria,” says Dax Sanders, president of product pipelines at Kinder Morgan.

NuStar, California NuStar Energy continues to develop its West Coast Renewable Fuels network, which now account for nearly 30 per cent of its storage segment revenue. It has two projects in hand to add further renewable diesel storage capacity at its Stockton terminal this year, while it is also expanding its ethanol transport offering.

IMTT, Louisiana International-Matex Tank Terminals (IMTT) is to build additional tankage, pipelines and dock infrastructure at its Geismar terminal in Louisiana, specifically to handle renewable feedstocks and products, including renewable diesel, biodiesel and other fuels. The project is backed by a long-term contract with Renewable Energy Group (REG), which is currently working on an expansion of its

nearby bio-refinery, due to come onstream in 2023. IMTT will nearly double total capacity at the Geismar marine terminal, building six new storage tanks.

Kinder Morgan, Louisiana Kinder Morgan and Neste have agreed to partner in the creation of a US logistics hub, based on Kinder Morgan’s Harvey terminal in Louisiana, for the collection and distribution of feedstocks and renewable fuels, including biodiesel, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and renewable feedstocks for polymers and chemicals. Kinder Morgan will modify existing tanks and pipework at the Harvey facility to allow segregated storage in 30 tanks, install a new boiler for heating products, and invest in rail car and other logistics elements. The project is supported by long-term commitment from Neste and is expected to start operations early in 2023.

NOLA, Louisiana Construction work started this past December on the NOLA Oil Terminal, sited on the Mississippi River in Plaquemine Parish, Louisiana. The $930m project (below) will

serve oceangoing tankers up to Suezmax site, as well as inland tank barges, handling crude oil and refined products. It will also offer blending, storage and transhipment services. The first phase of construction is scheduled to be completed in mid-2022; on completion of the second phase, the terminal will offer some 10m bbl (1.59 m3) of tank storage capacity.

Phillips 66, Louisiana Phillips 66 announced in November 2021 that it plans to convert its Alliance refinery in Belle Chasse, Louisiana to a terminal facility.

Conversion work is expected to take place over the course of this year.

Tallgrass, Louisiana Tallgrass Energy is looking again at plans for the proposed Plaquemine Liquids Terminal, a joint development with Drexel Hamilton Infrastructure partners in concert with the Plaquemine Port & Harbor Terminal District in Louisiana. The move follows the discovery of a cemetery and potential artifacts during cultural survey work. The development footprint has been reduced to protect those areas. While Tallgrass says that commercial activity on the rest of the site can spur job growth and has the support of local communities, it is now evaluating a range of opportunities other than the construction of an oil terminal.

Enbridge, Texas Having acquired Moda Midstream Operating in late 2021, Enbridge is planning to add some 2m bbl (320,000 m3) of additional storage capacity for crude oil exports at the Ingleside Energy Center, along with a solar facility to generate up to 60 MW of power, making the site a net-negative emissions facility.

Howard Energy, Texas Howard Energy Partners (HEP) is to add 575,000 bbl (91,400 m3) of new tank capacity at its Port Arthur terminal in Texas, along with new pipeline connections to Valero’s nearby refinery, to handle a long-term agreement with Diamond Green Diesel

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

SECTION SLUG 11

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(DGD), a joint venture between Valero and Darling Ingredients, which will produce renewable diesel at a new unit at the Valero refinery. HEP will also add 7 miles of rail track and associated rail loading/unloading facilities, truck unloading facilities and a Panamax deepwater dock.

“We firmly believe the greater the flexibility of your supply chain, the better you can react to the changing dynamics, as the demand for renewable diesel continues to strengthen,” said John Bullock, executive vice-president and chief strategy officer at Darling Ingredients, at the time the project was announced in May 2021. “We believe this agreement significantly enhances our raw material sourcing of feedstock as well as provides for better finished product marketing and distribution when the DGD Port Arthur facility commences production in the second half of 2023.”

Kinder Morgan, Texas Kinder Morgan is to invest some $64m in reducing CO2 emissions from its Galena Park and Pasadena terminals by 72 per cent; the project is expected to be placed in service in third quarter 2023.

Odfjell, Texas Construction has started on the Bay 13 expansion projects at Odfjell Terminals Houston (OTH). Due for completion by the end of 2023, the work will comprise six carbon steel and three stainless steel tanks with a total capacity of 32,000 m3 and will take total capacity at OTH to some 410,000 m3.

Odfjell says the tank bay will be highly automated, requiring less manual intervention, and will benefit from its ongoing Digital Transformation Program, which includes an advanced ERP system and automated control systems OIltanking, Texas Oiltanking North America signed a nonbinding letter of intent with ReGen III Corp in July 2021 to develop and operate logistics for ReGen’s used motor oil re-refinery at its Galveston County Terminal in Texas City.

Under the agreement, Oiltanking will develop storage tanks, loading and unloading pipelines, rail and marine loading and unloading facilities and other logistics assets at the terminal to support the re-refinery’s activities. The terminal currently handles specialty chemicals and petrochemicals and

has more than 87,000 m3 of storage capacity, with ample room for expansion Pin Oak, Texas Pin Oak Corpus Christi brought 1.2m bbl (190,000 m3) of crude oil tankage onstream at its Taft terminal in September 2021. The terminal is now linked by a new 20-inch pipeline to the Cactus II Taft terminal and Flint Hills’ Midway Station, allowing receipt of Permian and Eagle Ford crude oils and redelivery options to the Flint Hills refinery system and its terminal at Ingleside.

“With the addition of this new infrastructure, Pin Oak becomes the only terminal in the Corpus Christi/Ingleside/Taft market providing customers direct access to the region’s strategic Permian and Eagle Ford long-haul pipelines and direct access to all three of the region’s refineries,” the company said at the time.

Vopak, Texas Vopak opened its new terminal on the US Gulf Coast in Corpus Christi, Texas in October 2021. The 144,000-m3 facility was built to serve the Gulf Coast Growth Ventures polymer plant, a joint venture between ExxonMobil and Sabic, under a 20-year commercial agreement and is wholly owned

by Vopak. The terminal has pipeline links to the new petrochemical plant.

In the second half of 2021, Vopak also added 28,500 m3 of new capacity for chemicals at its Deer Park terminal on the Houston Ship Channel. Another 4,500 m3 was added in the first quarter of 2022.

Vopak Moda, Texas Vopak Moda Houston’s new greenfield terminal in Deer Park became fully operational in December 2021. The terminal is designed primarily to handle gases and is capable of berthing VLGCs as well as inland barges. “We are thrilled to bring the Vopak Moda Houston terminal into full service together with our partner Royal Vopak, our customers and other stakeholders,” said Moda Midstream CEO and founder Jonathan Z Ackerman, at the time. “In today’s world,

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

STORAGE TERMINALS 13

supply chains must be resilient and sustainable. With the ability to safely and reliably transport ammonia and other pressurised gases for our current and future customers, Vopak Moda Houston is a vital link in the new energy transition supply chain. We are in active discussions with customers to provide logistics solutions for low-carbon products, including storage and handling of green and blue ammonia, hydrogen and low-carbon bunkering. Vopak Moda Houston is well positioned to become the premier low-carbon ammonia and hydrogen terminalling hub on the US Gulf Coast.”

LATIN AMERICA Vopak, Brazil Vopak has scheduled a 20,000-m3 expansion of its Alemoa terminal in Brazil; the new chemicals tankage is due onstream early in 2024 and will taken total capacity close to 300,000 m3.

Vopak, Mexico Vopak completed a 40,000-m3 expansion of its wholly owned Altamira chemicals terminal in Mexico in the first quarter of this year, with total capacity now standing at 144,000 m3.

following some Covid-related delays. Work is now progressing on the second and third phases of construction. Once fully operational, the terminal will offer some 249,000 m3 of storage capacity, primarily for chemicals, in 180 tanks. The first phase includes 79 tanks in eight tank pits.

Vesta Terminals, Belgium Vesta Terminals last year began a 150,000-m3 expansion of its Antwerp terminal. Five new 30,000-m3 tanks will be used specifically to handle jet fuel, with connections to the Central European Pipeline System (CEPS) providing links to most major airports in north-west Europe. Completion is scheduled for fourth quarter 2022. The work will increase total storage capacity at Vesta Terminal Antwerp to 976,000 m3 for petroleum products, biofuels and easy chemicals.

Vopak, Belgium During the middle of 2021, Vopak added 50,000 m3 of storage capacity for chemicals at its wholly owned Linkeroever terminal in

Antwerp, taking total capacity at the site up to 190,000 m3.

Gasunie, Netherlands Gasunie, HES International and Vopak have signed a cooperation agreement aimed at developing a green ammonia import terminal on the Maasvlakte in Rotterdam, ACE Terminal. The partners envisage a 2026 startup date, noting that an import terminal for green ammonia will make a vital contribution to the supply of green hydrogen, which is seen as an essential element in the future decarbonised energy mix.

GES, Netherlands Global Energy Storage (GES) has acquired an interest in the Stargate Terminal at Europoort in Rotterdam from Gunvor and will develop more than 20 ha of land in the heart of the port, with the support of the Port of Rotterdam Authority, to develop a state-of-the-art bulk liquids terminal specifically to handle low-carbon products.

GES will install a new jetty and is planning

NORTHERN EUROPE Noord Natie, Belgium The latest round of expansion of the Noord Natie Odfjell Terminal (NNOT) in Antwerp (right) is due to be completed this month; the first Ivens-built stainless steel tanks in the 35,000- m3 tank pit ‘T’ are already filled. This will mark the end of a four-phase expansion over the past five years that has added a total of 81,700 m3 of new capacity.

The partners in the terminal have also agreed to continue expanding the site’s capacity, with a new tank pit ‘U’ now planned.

This will add another 36,000 m3 in six carbon steel tanks and is due to be commissioned by the end of 2023, after which total capacity at the terminal will exceed 450,000 m3.

Standic, Belgium Standic put the first phase of its new Antwerp terminal into operation this past February,

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to become part of the logistics chain that will be required to import ‘blue’ and ‘green’ hydrogen into Rotterdam, as part of the port’s plans to become a hub for hydrogen import and distribution in northern Europe. It will also handle biofuels, gases, ammonia and other hydrogen carriers.

GPS, Netherlands Varo Energy and GPS Group completed work on a new rail line and ethanol tanks at the GPS terminal in Amsterdam at the start of this year. The new assets connect to 20 Class 1 tanks in the terminal, creating an integrated biofuels facility, one of the few in the region to offer handling of both traditional and biofuels. The new facilities were built with the support of the Port of Amsterdam and follow on from a neardoubling in capacity at the terminal during 2019/20 to nearly 300,000 m3.

HES, Netherlands HES International’s new Hartel terminal on the Maasvlakte in Rotterdam is nearing completion, after some Covid-related delays.

The new terminal will offer 1.3m m3 of storage capacity for gasoline, diesel, gasoil, jet fuel and biofuels and is specifically designed for blending and mixing operations.

It will have six mooring positions for seagoing vessels and sufficient draft to allow it to handle VLCCs.. Nine barge positions will

offer opportunities for shipments to the European hinterland.

Koole Terminals, Netherlands The Port of Rotterdam and Koole Terminals have been working together to improve vessel and barge access in the Botlek area of the port, with the port having now renewed the quay wall and completed construction of the substructure of jetty 7 at Koole Tankstorage Botlek. Koole itself handled the 400-metre jetty superstructure, including a new hose tower that was installed this past November.

Koole is also planning an expansion of the Botlek site, with 150,000 m3 of new capacity for its client Marvesa, a leading producer of edible oils and fats for the animal feed industry. This follows on from construction of 80,000 m3 of dedicated tankage in 2020. The first new tanks have already been installed and Koole is building the operational organisation, using its Koole Academy to help develop current and new employees. Full operation of the site is expected within a year.

Koole last year also completed installation of new, fully automated truck loading racks at Koole Tankstorage Minerals Pernis in Rotterdam. The work included the construction of ten loading bays, seven of which have been fully provided with loading equipment; the other three are held in reserve pending demand in growth.

Koole Terminals has also signed an MOU with Horisont Energi to collaborate on the development of a terminal and storage facility in Rotterdam to handle ammonia shipped from Norway. The agreement also covers technical and commercial conceptual models for storage of ammonia products, services solutions and technologies for further distribution, to meet forecast demand in north-west Europe.

LBC, Netherlands LBC Tank Terminals put the new tanks of its ‘Rainbow phase 2’ expansion project at its Botlek site in in Rotterdam (below) into service in September last year, receiving its first cargo by sea. The expansion added 70,000 m3 of new chemical tankage, taking total capacity up to 182,000 m3; LBC says there is space available to more than double that figure.

“This is once again a great milestone and accomplishment of everybody involved,” the company said. “With our state-of-the-art infrastructure, we are very excited to serve our existing and new customers with safe and reliable storage and handling services in the heart of the Botlek area in Rotterdam.”

Maastank, Netherlands Dekker Group expanded its Maastank terminal in the Botlek area of Rotterdam with 16,700 m3 of stainless steel tankage in July 2021, taking total capacity to 87,000 m3. The work involved installation of nine new tanks, together with two new weighbridges for the loading and unloading of rail tank cars and tank containers.

Vopak, Netherlands Vopak is planning a 64,000-m3 expansion of its Vlaardingen terminal, which mainly handles vegoils. The new tankage, which will take overall capacity up to nearly 620,000 m3, will be used for renewable feedstocks and is due onstream in third quarter 2023.

VTTI, Netherlands Eurotank Amsterdam, part of the VTTI network, last year undertook a project to convert its gasoil tanks to store biofuels and hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO). The work followed on from

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gate times, along with the installation of improved safety systems. Jarrow Terminal will also be equipped with a drumming facility for aviation gasoline. Other work is also in the pipeline.

Stanlow Terminals, UK Stanlow Terminals is to develop the UK’s largest biofuels hub in the north-west of England, with significant investment planned over the next three years at its Stanlow and Tranmere sites to deliver 300,000-m3 of storage capacity to support its customers in delivering the UK’s transition to net-zero. New tankage will allow customers to store, blend and distribute biofuels as drop-in replacement transport fuels for the road, aviation and marine sectors. a successful pilot project and created 75,000 m3 of biofuels capacity at the 1.2m-m3 site, coming onstream in late 2021.

Euro Tank Terminal (ETT), VTTI’s Rotterdam facility, has expanded capacity by 96,000 m3 with the addition of six new tanks this past April, designed to be able to support the energy transition by blending bio components.

The expansion takes capacity at ETT up to close to 1.4m m3, handling a range of products from crude oil to chemicals.

Navigator Terminals, UK Navigator Terminals is to expand bitumen storage and handling capacity in the Teesside area in north-east England, under an expanded agreement with TotalEnergies. Navigator plans to install additional ancillary equipment and new tankage, due onstream in 2023.

Prax, UK Prax Petroleum is investing in what it calls a “significant” upgrade of the Jarrow terminal in north-east England (above) that it acquired in 2016, as part of a long-term plan to make the site a strategic hub to ensure the security of fuel supply for the UK. The first job is the refurbishment of the site’s largest storage tank, which has a capacity of 9,300 m3, which will allow work on other tanks to take place without interruptions to supply. Prax also intends to fully automate the terminal’s loading systems, in order to reduce gate-to-

Stolthaven, UK Stolt-Nielsen is investing $35m to upgrade jetty facilities at the Stolthaven Dagenham site on the Thames estuary; the work will be undertaken this year and next.

MEDITERRANEAN ATT, Croatia VTTI says the ATT joint-venture terminal in Ploce, Croatia, in which it has a 70 per cent interest alongside local utility company Energia Naturalia (ENNA), is close to completing the third phase of construction, which will take capacity up to 175,000 m3 for clean petroleum products. The partners are planning further work to more than double liquids capacity to 361,000 m3 and add 60,000 m3 of LPG tankage; that project will also include a new jetty capable of handling product tankers up to LR size.

Stolthaven, Turkey Stolthaven Terminals is planning to develop a new greenfield terminal in Ceyhan, Turkey in a joint venture with Rönesans Holding, which is behind the Ceyhan Petrochemical Industrial Zone. In the first phase, the terminal will provide services to Ceyhan Polipropilen Uretim, the first project being developed in the Zone, which plans to produce 450,000 tonnes of propylene per year by propane dehydrogenation.

Plans for the terminal include the construction of additional storage capacity, which will likely be added during the first phase of the project, to serve customers who have expressed an interest in the import and storage of LPG. MIDDLE EAST & AFRICA ATS Terminals, UAE ATS Terminals increased capacity of its facility in the Hamriyah Free Zone in Sharjah, UAE by 30,000 m3 to 72,000 m3 last year; a fourth phase of construction, which will take total capacity up to 100,000 m3, is planned for this year.

Takoradi, Ghana The Port of Takoradi commissioned its new bulk liquids import terminal in June 2021; the facility had been completed before the end of 2020 but operations had been held up by Covid-related restrictions. The new facility has the deepest draft of any port in West Africa and is used to handle imports of road fuels, LPG, bitumen and other products.

OTTCO, Oman Oman Tank Terminal Company (OTTCO) is planning to bring the first phase of the new Ras Markaz Crude Oil Terminal onstream later this year, offering up to 25m bbl (4m m3) of capacity. The nearby OQ8 refinery in Duqm intends to use 5.3m bbl of capacity, with the remainder being available to other parties for the import and export of crude oil via a single buoy mooring.

Engen, South Africa Petronas-owned Engen is proceeding with its refinery-to-terminal (RTT) project, having now closed its refinery near Durban, the oldest refinery in South Africa. Engen had determined that the facility was no longer financially viable and that an import terminal on the site would provide better security of supply.

Commissioning of the new terminal was originally scheduled for third quarter 2023.

Brooge, UAE Brooge Petroleum & Gas Investment, a subsidiary of Brooge Energy, opened the

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second phase of its Fujairah terminal in the UAE in September 2021, expanding capacity at the facility to 1.0m m3. The company says it has designed the terminal with some of the latest technology to maximise efficiency, reduce operating costs and product losses, and offer ancillary services including heating and blending. The terminal is designed to handle clean petroleum products and crude oil and its capacity is fully contracted under multi-year take-or-pay arrangements.

terminal to be built alongside ExxonMobil’s proposed Huizhou chemical complex in Guangdong province, China. The terminal will service a world-scale flexible-feed steam cracker located in Dayawan Petrochemical Industrial Park.

The project remains subject to a final investment decision but, should it go ahead as planned, Vopak will take a 30 per cent stake in the 560,000-m3 terminal, including the pipeline connections to the jetty and the cracker.

SOUTH ASIA Petredec, India Petredec intends to buy out its partner in the joint venture project to develop a 34,000-tonne LPG import facility in Krishnapatnam, Andra Pradesh, India.

National Gas Company Oman (SAOG), which has a 60 per cent shareholding in the venture, is refocusing its business development efforts following the challenging conditions as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic; Petredec will buy that share and become sole owner and operator of the terminal. The project is in its final development stage with construction expected to be completed during the third quarter, prior to its commissioning before the end of this year.

Oiltanking, China Oiltanking Daya Bay has signed a strategic alliance framework with local authorities in Huizhou, China to advance the development of the world-class Daya Bay Petrochemical Industrial Park, laying the foundation for a modern logistics and warehousing cooperation that deepens the collaboration between the Daya Bay Government, Huizhou Municipal Government and Oiltanking Group.

The agreement follows the relocation of seven tanks within the park area to allow better utilisation of the available land.

The tanks offer some 33,000 m3 of petrochemical storage.

“This agreement provides an excellent opportunity to further grow the partnership with the Daya Bay government and support the advancement of the Daya Bay Industrial Park,” says Matti Lievonen, CEO of Oiltanking. Since the announcement, Oiltanking Daya Bay has become part of Advario, the new company formed as a carve-out of selected Oiltanking assets.

Raftaar Terminals, India Reliance BP Mobility opened its first automated additivisation facility this past March at the third-party Raftaar Terminal in Mangalore. The new unit provides automatic dosing of high speed diesel for supply to retail outlets in the area via a new 10,000-litre tank.

The terminal, which lies in the New Mangalore port area, is a joint venture between ATS Terminals and local investors and has a capacity of 35,800 m3. Its main role is to act as an import location for fuels for distribution to the local market.

NORTH-EAST ASIA Huizhou QuanMei, China Vopak has been awarded a contract by Huizhou QuanMei Petrochemical Terminal for storage and services at a liquid products

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

Stolthaven, Taiwan Stolthaven Terminals signed a letter of intent in September 2021 with Revivegen Environmental Technology to study the possibility of jointly developing a greenfield terminal in the port of Kaohsiung, Taiwan, where Revivegen has recently taken a lease on land. Stolthaven says it has seen growing customer demand for high-quality bulk liquids storage in the region.

“The terminal will focus on the safe and efficient handling and storage of chemicals and industrial gases for local and multinational companies, including those with manufacturing operations in Taiwan,” Guy Bessant, president of Stolthaven Terminals, said at the time. “A terminal in Taiwan would be complementary to our existing global network and increase the reach of the supply chain solutions that we are able to offer our customers.”

AUSTRALASIA Crowley, Australia Crowley Solutions has appointed Saunders International to provide EPC and management services and the construction of several new storage tanks at its site in Darwin in Australia’s Northern Territory. The planned work follows the award in September 2021 of a major contract from the US Defense Logistics Agency for the storage of aviation turbine fuel and jet fuel at the terminal.

Groundwork on the new facility started this past January with construction work starting in February. The $270m project involves construction of 11 storage tanks with a total capacity of some 300,000 m3.

Vopak, China Vopak and its partner in the joint venture Qinzhou industrial terminal brought the 290,200-m3 facility onstream in the middle of last year. Further work is being

Vopak, Australia During fourth quarter 2021, Vopak commissioned 105,000 m3 of new tankage at its Sydney terminal, which handles oil products for the local market. The wholly

considered to help maximise throughput of LPG and olefins.

Vopak is also working on a 65,000-m3 expansion of the joint-venture Caojing industrial terminal near Shanghai, which is due for completion this month.

owned terminal now has a capacity of just over 450,000 m3. Having indicated it was considering its investment in Australia last year, Vopak now says it will hold on to its two terminals in the country, which are generating good levels of income.

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our business with the highest care for our people, the communities we work in and the environment we live in.”

Following the move, Oiltanking now operates 16 wholly owned and joint-venture terminals in Latin America, India, Indonesia, South Africa, Denmark and Bulgaria.

THERE IS A NEW name on the global bulk liquids storage business: Oiltanking has carved out a large slice of its assets into a new company, Advario, with a focus on providing sustainable infrastructure to meet the future needs of the world as it navigates the coming energy transition.

Formation of the new entity is part of Oiltanking’s ‘2025 strategy’ and transformation plan, announced this past November, which included a vision of a new business unit to handle its chemical, gas and new energies portfolio.

“The storage industry has a key role to play

with other players along the value chain to ensure undisrupted, secure access to low carbon energy everywhere in the world.

Advario’s strategy is focused on growing its business across three segments; chemicals, gas and increasingly new energies,” the company states.

Rotterdam-based Advario starts life with a global network of 13 former Oiltanking terminals in China, Singapore, UAE, Oman, the US, Belgium and Finland but says it is aiming to double its business by the end of the decade, while also achieving net-zero operations by 2040 at the latest.

BRAINS OF THE BUSINESS It has become clear in recent years – and Advario is well aware of this – that achieving the required systemic change in the energy sector will be complex and will need close collaboration among all players in the industry. Combining capabilities, sharing risks and pursuing opportunities in partnerships will be part of Advario’s business strategy as it develops.

“The tank storage industry has a key role to play in enabling the energy transition as well as supply security,” Verkooijen adds. “Today we are making a bold step forward by launching Advario, our new company that will be focused on growth in petrochemicals, gases and new energies and puts sustainability at the heart of what we do.

“With a team of 1,200 highly committed storage experts, our strategic global network and our long legacy in the industry, we are very well placed to take up a frontrunner role in transforming our industry, together with our partners,” he concludes.

Verkooijen, who was formerly at OMV, is working alongside Douglas van der Wiel, chief growth officer, who was with Oiltanking for more than 20 years. Among his roles there were CEO of the joint venture between Oiltanking and Star Energy in Dubai and president of Oiltanking Asia Pacific. Yvan Tavernier, who joined Oiltanking in 2013, initially as managing director of Oiltanking Stolthaven Antwerp, is COO. Also on the leadership team are Liz Mayhew, senior vice-president, people, who held a similar role at Oiltanking from 2019, and Claas Pinkenburg, senior vice-president, strategy,

to progress the energy transition and partner

“We are convinced that only through highly ambitious ESG standards we will achieve ‘better business’ for our partners, society and ourselves,” says Bas Verkooijen, appointed CEO of Advario. “For me this means that besides ambitiously growing our business, an equally important priority will be to operate

portfolio and sustainability, who will also lead Advario’s M&A activities. Pinkenburg held the same role at Oiltanking and was previously head of corporate development at Marquard & Bahls, the Hamburg-based parent company of both Oiltanking and Advario. advario.com

LEAD FROM THE FRONT STRATEGY • ADVARIO, THE RESULT OF A CARVE-OUT OF OILTANKING’S TERMINAL NETWORK, AIMS TO DOUBLE IN SIZE WHILE BEING A FRONTRUNNER IN DRIVING SUSTAINABILITY AND THE ENERGY TRANSITION

 TRADING HOUSE MARQUARD & BAHLS HAS REORGANISED ITS TERMINAL OPERATIONS THE BETTER TO HANDLE THE ENERGY TRANSITION

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NNOAT’s block train facility, which allows four tank cars to be loaded simultaneously, recently completed its first chemical train for dispatch to Germany, supporting the modal shift ambitions of the EU Green Deal. “We are actively focusing on attracting new business by rail and are exploring with potential partners how to work around the shortage of standard tank cars,” de Graeff says.

WHEN NOORD NATIE Odfjell Antwerp Terminal (NNOAT) completed its latest new tank pit this year, it was due to mark the end of a four-phase expansion, which has added more than 80,000 m3 of new capacity. But with demand still growing and supported by decisive responses from its shareholders, the company has decided to carry on with construction of yet another new tank pit that will add a further 36,000 m3 by the end of 2023 and take total capacity up to more than 450,000 m3.

NNOAT has been able to make quick decisions on these investments because it has permits in place, well established infrastructure and connectivity, and can adjust

“The Port of Antwerp-Bruges keeps on growing as a major import location for the distribution of chemicals, oils and gases into western Europe,” notes Pieter de Graeff, NNOAT’s commercial and business development manager. “The impact of the Covid crisis on the volumes we have handled has been limited and this year we have also seen a shift in the choice of transport for some bulk specialty chemical flows, with shippers moving away from tank containers towards bulk liquid consignment, with the need for tank storage on delivery.

“Interruptions in the logistics sector, with uncertainties about the availability of capacity on trade lanes, has encouraged suppliers to

BETTER ALL THE TIME NNOAT is not solely focused on expanding its footprint in the middle of Antwerp, but also making better and more sustainable use of the assets it has to hand. It is now in the second year of its sustainability plan, which has so far involved the use of low-energy LED lighting, the re-use of water, installation of more efficient steam boilers, and the addition of public charging for electric vehicles in its parking area.

It is also addressing the quality of its service provision, seeking constant improvement in gate-to-gate times for trucks using the site.

This has involved extra administrative support during the morning rush and a new centralised top-loading bay with three simultaneous loading positions. In addition, there is a continuous programme of improvement in terms of tank automation, emission controls and a move away from individual loadings at the pump manifolds to top loading at centralised loading bays.

One important piece of work, due to be finalised this month, is the deepening of the berths on the south side of the terminal to provide up to 14 metres of draft; this will provide more freedom in port rotation for deepsea vessels and make it possible for them to make NNOAT their first call in Antwerp.

The opening of the latest tank pit was marked by a visit from Bart de Wever, Mayor of Antwerp, Port of Antwerp-Bruges president

the services it offers its customers through tank modifications to meet specific needs. In addition, the strategy it defined for itself in 2020 stresses the development of its business through a focus on capturing organic growth and taking advantage of the trend for chemical producers to outsource their captive storage.

look for alternatives, such as the shift to bulk liquids storage with supply by rail, tank container or barges and coastal vessels.

These trends are supported by NNOAT with its 2,500-metre berth, its own rail yard and direct connections to the Groenland marshalling yard,” de Graeff adds.

Annick de Ridder and CEO Jacques Vandermeiren, and the entire board of Noord Natie Holding, along with customers and other partners. That was followed by a family day as, de Graeff says, human resources remain the most important asset of NNOAT. www.noordnatie.be

GROW YOUR OWN GROWTH STRATEGY • NOORD NATIE IS CONTINUING WITH ITS EXPANSION PLANS BUT ALSO LOOKING AT THE QUALITY OF ITS SERVICE AND SUSTAINABILITY OF ITS OPERATIONS

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SECTION SLUG 19

GREEN. FOR SAFETY. Transporting fuel can be a messy business - spillage a daily problem.

Our SAFELOAD GREEN API coupler is designed to be rugged and durable, and captures any excess fuel lost at disconnect due to worn adaptors, allowing excess fuel to run down into the ‘designed-in’ cup within the API casting which is emptied when it is connected to a parking nose.

It’s a simple design and easy to maintain with little to go wrong and, like all Fort Vale products, is made to last. With up to 10 Bar operating pressure with a 16 Bar MAWP, the SAFELOAD GREEN API coupler will operate at extreme pressures and withstand high-pressure spikes - giving you peace of mind for many years to come.

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ALL FACILITIES THAT load and unload railcars and tank trucks (storage terminals, chemical plants, refineries etc) serve the same basic function – facilitating the arrival, storage and departure of various liquids via various forms of transport. However, each site is unique in its operational design and setup.

The equipment needed to ensure the efficient, reliable, safe and ergonomic transfer of liquids therefore varies from site to site, depending on each design. Those that can achieve and maintain elevated levels of operational efficiency are those that have managers who have put in the hard hours

will they be able to outfit the site with a system that meets all of the site’s specific operational needs.

THREE STEPS TO HEAVEN In general, there are three variables that must be considered before selecting the loading arm system for any site.

1. Location, location, location. It’s a cliché, but that does not mean it’s not true: the location of the loading racks will be the main determining factor in the type of loading arms that can be used, along with the location of all ancillary equipment and structures. After

The arms must be positioned so that they can move up, over and around any possible obstructions, from light poles, support columns and power lines to meters, gangways and safety cages, and can fit under a roof if it is a covered location. Loading arms can be heavy, so proper structural support must also be built into the system design, with improperly supported arms being difficult to move and potentially dangerous for the operator to handle.

2. What’s the product? Each facility’s product ‘menu’ might involve a wide range of products, from wastewater to anhydrous ammonia and biodiesel to sulphuric acid, each of which has different handling characteristics. Liquids with water-like viscosities will need to be handled differently than those with the consistency of molasses, while hazardous or corrosive liquids need to be transferred through equipment that is compatible with their aggressive nature. Some liquids will also thicken, crystalise or even freeze as ambient temperatures change, which may also create a need for a heattracing system or steam jackets. Finally, with throughput rates being the heartbeat of the terminal operation, the loading arm system must be able to reliably produce desired flow rates, which goes hand-in-hand in determining the actual size of the necessary piping.

3. Transport factors. Bottom loading is the preferred method for petroleum products because tank trucks are standardised, while top loading is more common in chemical handling applications. In either case, it is good practice to walk through the entire loading/ unloading process to determine what an ideal process looks like. Bottom loading connections are also easier to perform and, if the transport has several compartments, overall loading/unloading time will be reduced. Bottom loading bays also require less equipment and poured concrete, which

needed to determine the best loading arrangement – and the most appropriate loading arms to use.

Only when site managers fully understand the idiosyncrasies that are built into their product loading and unloading operations

determining the number of loading positions, the system designer must choose the best spot for the risers, which are the foundation of the system. If several arms are to be used, all risers must be located so that they do not interfere with the operation of the other arms.

makes them more economical. In the instances where top loading is used, the loading system must have enough horizontal range so that the arms can reach the farthest compartment without needing to move the vehicle; the system must make mis-spotting

SWEET MUSIC LOADING ARMS •SELECTING THE BEST LOADING RACK LAYOUT FOR ANY PARTICULAR SITE REQUIRES THOUGHT AND PLANNING. DAVID MORROW* REPORTS ON A RECENT PROJECT FOR OPW

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a rare occurrence as any need to relocate the railcar or transport truck is lost loading/ unloading time. The facility operator must also consider how the product will be top-loaded, either splash-filled through an open manway or through a hard connection.

If hard connections will be used, the operator has many options available: hard or soft connection, quick- or dry-disconnect technology and whether any valving will be needed. Finally, a level detection system is normally recommended as a secondary shutoff that reliably indicates when the loading process is completed. Overfills lead to spills and unsafe working conditions, with the potential to do harm to the environment and surrounding communities if the spilled substance is hazardous or dangerous.

Other general considerations include whether or not special non-destructive testing of the loading arm equipment is required; whether special welding procedures will be needed; whether insulation designed to protect the operator from handling hot piping is required; whether any additional weight will be added to the loading arms after installation; and any need for connections to aid in venting or blowing down product from the arm at the end of the loading/ unloading process.

PRACTICAL DESIGN Here is an example of how those variables were considered to made the loading/

unloading process at a petroleum product storage terminal more efficient. The site in question is a high-volume, bottom loading terminal in Kentucky, originally built in the 1970s but featuring several subsequent ad hoc upgrades, expansions and reconfigurations to its truck loading lanes.

This had ultimately resulted in a disorganised layout with a variety of poorly matched components that made operations cumbersome, leading to loading inefficiencies and increased physical strain on drivers.

In the search for a solution, the terminal operator and his loading arm system provider determined that the biggest issue was that the loading arms did not effectively cross over one another. This meant that it had become difficult for drivers to access the required arm without having to move other arms out of the way first, or to load more than one compartment at a time.

A new layout design that incorporated the ideal spacing and staggering of the arm mounts was created; it featured short-range hose loaders that allow simultaneous connecting to and filling of up to three product lines. They are generally stored horizontally with only slight upward or downward movement required to align the coupler with the truck adaptor. Additionally, dry-break API couplers with the ability to ensure reliable and easy connection to a tank truck or railcar were added and new mounting risers were specified and designed that

enabled the loading arms (pictured below) to be installed in an optimal configuration.

JOB DONE Today, the redesigned loading system has arms that can cross over and clear one another, which allows easy access to the desired arm and the ability to load multiple compartments quickly and efficiently at the same time. The arms are also more ergonomic in that they store and balance at roughly the same height as the truck adaptors. This means that little effort or strain is required from drivers in order to connect and disconnect the arms to the truck adaptors and return the arms to their storage position at the completion of the loading process. Finally, with all of the new system’s components sourced from the same supplier, it is easier to order, stock and track spare and replacement parts. And all of this took just six weeks from the purchase order to installation. *David Morrow is director of sales for OPW Engineered Systems, part of Dover Corporation’s OPW division and based in Ohio. He can be contacted at David.Morrow@opwglobal.com.

OPW is the global leader in fully integrated fluid-handling, management, monitoring and control solutions for the safe and efficient handling of critical petroleum-derived fluids from the refinery to the commercial and retail points of consumption. For more information please go to opw-es.com.

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H2 OH! HYDROGEN • GASUNIE HAS ESTABLISHED MORE PARTNERSHIPS THAT PROMISE TO HELP THE BENELUX REGION DEVELOP AN OPEN-ACCESS HYDROGEN DISTRIBUTION NETWORK DUTCH ENERGY HEAVYWEIGHTS Gasunie, the national gas utility, and Vopak, the world’s leading operator of independent tank storage facilities, are no strangers to working together. They have been partners in the Gate LNG terminal in Rotterdam since 2011 and earlier this year announced plans to establish a hydrogen import terminal, ACE Terminal, on the Maasvlakte in Rotterdam, with the participation of HES International (HCB May 2022, page 18).

The two companies are now taking things a step further, as they position themselves to handle the coming energy transition, with the expectation that hydrogen will play a large role in the decarbonised industrial and mobility economy in years to come. At the start of May this year, Gasunie and Vopak signed a cooperation agreement covering the future development of infrastructure projects to facilitate the import of hydrogen into north-west Europe through ports in the Netherlands and Germany.

Regional supply of ‘green’ hydrogen, produced with the input of renewable electricity, will not be able to cope with demand if Europe is to meet its targets under the EU Green Deal and the ‘Fit for 55’ plan.

Therefore, large-sale imports of hydrogen will be essential – indeed, a number of plans are already in place and the first import streams are expected to start up as early as 2025. A local logistics infrastructure will be crucial to receive and distribute that hydrogen.

As independent infrastructure companies, Gasunie and Vopak will focus solely on the development and safe and reliable operation of open-access infrastructure. Logistics infrastructure that is available to all market parties is most effective, both from a cost and environmental footprint perspective. It can further accelerate the import and use of green energy to a wide range of end markets.

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

HALFWAY THERE “With this agreement, Vopak and Gasunie continue their many years of successful co-operation,” says Ulco Vermeulen, business development director at Gasunie. “Hydrogen is an essential component of the sustainable energy mix of the future. Our joint goal is to enable the international hydrogen value chain by providing the necessary import infrastructure. As a renewable energy infrastructure company, we already function as a linking pin for the energy transition in various public private partnerships in the Netherlands. With this agreement, Vopak and Gasunie can play a role in the transport, storage and import as part of the international hydrogen value chain.”

Gasunie believes that, within the Netherlands, most of the hydrogen distribution network will use repurposed

natural gas pipelines. Indeed, in 2018 it converted a 12-km section of gas pipeline in the Zeeuws-Vlaanderen region in 2018, which is now carrying hydrogen between the plants of Dow Benelux and Yara.

“The fact that this hydrogen pipeline has now been operating reliably and safely for three years is important,” explains Inge Aardse, managing director of Hynetwork Services. “It is on a regional scale what we will be realising nationally in the Netherlands over the next few years. We are going to use the knowledge and experience we have gained in Zeeuws-Vlaanderen to realise the national backbone for hydrogen.”

Near-term plans do not solely involve national distribution in the Netherlands; Gasunie has also signed an agreement with Fluxys on the development of a network stretching across the border into Belgium, initially covering the North Sea Port area between Ghent and Terneuzen. The aim is to have networks in place on both sides of the border by 2026, which can then be connected, creating one of the first cross-border hydrogen networks in Europe. www.gasunie.nl www.fluxys.com www.vopak.com

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amount of residual fuel in the poppet void space on disconnection, and protects against any ingress of foreign debris. The amount of liquid loss on disconnection has proven to be, on average, 75 per cent less than the permitted 5 cc. The range now includes loading arm systems and API bottom loading couplers for semi-automatic, manual, high-pressure and green requirements.

I’VE JUST RETURNED lfrom a successful and well attended StocExpo 2022 - Rotterdam was buzzing with exhibitors and visitors and it felt great to be back after the enforced solitude of the last two years. The Fort Vale stand was very busy and it was a pleasure to see so many business friends (and competitors!) once again. Taking centre-stage was our (quite literally) evergreen API coupler, attached to a rather impressive Fort Vale loading arm, which got me thinking about

racking up sales and supporters for more than 25 years now.

First developed in 1996, the market-leading Safeload range has been the first choice for many oil majors, and the expanding range of Safeload products for the petroleum transfer industry now includes loading arm systems as well as four different types of couplers.

The Safeload range embodies the Fort Vale culture of quality, design excellence and safety - it’s solid, it’s dependable, and is a regular

GOING GREEN These features are replicated across the range, with the ‘Green’ version sporting an integrated cup to capture product loss at truck disconnect and is available in our semiautomatic 6-bar and 10-bar range, the ‘Manual’ with its new shaft and nut assembly that is even easier to maintain, and the ‘High Pressure’ version with strengthened collar to ensure a robust latch engagement. The unique ‘wrap around’ latches cover more than 60 per cent of the truck adaptor face, improving the security of connection and reducing wear to the adaptor and the coupler, prolonging the life of both components.

Another crucial feature is the materials we use in construction of the unit - the outer housing is hard anodised to BS5599, giving long life and durability, while treated pressurebearing components enhance mechanical strength, especially at low temperatures.

Our decision to introduce the ‘Safeload Green’ has been driven by the knowledge that driver safety can be massively improved simply by minimising the risk of slipping on spilt product while loading. It’s a simple design and easy to maintain with little to go wrong and, like all our products, is made to last.

This kind of ongoing development, coupled with our standard three-year warranty, really does give terminal operators complete peace of mind, especially as emerging countries move from top-loading to bottom-loading systems, which are considerably safer.

our API range, which has been steadily

but unspectacular fixture on the company sales chart but, for the terminal customers that use them, the Safeload API coupler is a prized asset.

Long praised by many oil industry majors for its reliability and robust construction, the coupler ensures that there is only a minimal

All in all (and as far as I am concerned), the Safeload coupler represents what is best about Fort Vale, in that it sums up our core values simply and succinctly - innovative design using the finest tools and the best materials - here’s to the next 25 years! www.fortvale.com

FOUR-PART HARMONY COUPLINGS • JONATHAN PARKER, FORT VALE’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR, LOOKS BACK AT THE HISTORY OF THE NOW EVER-PRESENT API COUPLER

 FORT VALE’S SALES TEAM WAS VERY HAPPY TO GET OUT AGAIN AT LAST MONTH’S STOCEXPO EVENT, MEETING MANY NEW AND EXISTING CUSTOMERS

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COME ON HOME EVENT REPORT • STOCEXPO IS BACK AND TURNED OUT TO BE AN ENERGISING EXPERIENCE FOR THOSE IN THE STORAGE BUSINESS EAGER TO MEET FACE-TO-FACE AGAIN THERE MAY WELL have been those who, after two years of Covid-related restrictions, may have felt it unlikely that a major trade show would be able to be held successfully in Europe. But that was what happened last month as StocExpo returned to the Rotterdam Ahoy and attracted thousands of visitors to view the wares on show from more than 150 exhibitors.

Those visitors came from all over the world – more than 100 countries were represented, with senior personnel from such companies as Shell, Vopak and other key terminals and storage providers.

Lourda Derry, COO of Easyfairs, the host of StocExpo, says: “It’s wonderful to be back in person. The sector is going through an important transition and it’s crucial that we are able to share ideas and tackle these

 PICTURE CAPTION: SECOND QUARTER TO BE SOMEWHAT STRONGER THAN THE FIRST QUARTER.”

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issues together. I’m personally happy to have seen everyone and StocExpo has, once again, enabled discussion, networking and new business in the global tank storage industry.”

Sachin Mohanani, terminal operations analyst at Shell, explains the value of a real-world event: “This was my first time attending StocExpo in person, I attended virtually last year. You get a lot more out of it in person, particularly when it comes to networking. There’s been lots of topical information about energy transition and security and it’s been really valuable to be here and get insights from our energy partners directly.”

Exhibitor Peter Dikkerboom from HMT, says: “We’ve had lots of people we know visit us on our stand, it’s been like two months of new business acquisition in a single

afternoon! We spoke to a dozen people we normally have to go and visit individually, and they were here visiting us. There are both decision makers here and operations people – people who actually use the tech – so it’s been really valuable.”

HAPPY FACES As well as stands, the exhibition floor saw full robotic tech demonstrations from the likes of SPRINT Robotics, PPG, Re-Gen Robotics and ScoutDI, to name just a few. Catherine Reijans of SPRINT Robotics says: “The event’s been energising! It’s great to do business again with people, connect and move forward together!”

Peter Postma of Siemens Energy, comments: “From what I’ve experienced here, it’s more intense and more focused. Everyone we’ve seen has an agenda, we’re positively surprised by the amount of homework the delegates have done. We’re here with our new, state-ofthe-art robotic inspection product, and our well-established tank management system which has a 25-year track record. This is the kind of tech that needs to be demonstrated face to face!”

There was plenty of interest in digitisation, too. Miranda Moonen, director of Maintenance Solutions, says: “It’s been very busy, it’s been crowded all day. We had a lot of terminal maintenance professionals visit because they want a dashboard that is smart and easy to read, even for non-technical people, so they’re exactly the people we wanted to speak to as we launched our new IAM-Datadriven Maintenance KPI Dashboard here at the show.

StocExpo has exceeded our expectations, we’ve been the busiest stand!”

Networking was facilitated at the delegate and networking lounge and the VIP lounge, as well as on StocExpo’s own networking app, SE Connect, which brought face-to-face meetings back which took place throughout the three days. Stefana Sopco from Smartflow comments: “Thanks to the app for booking meetings, SE Connect, we’ve had some really valuable conversations that have actually become opportunities for us. It’s made networking targeted and easy!”

StocExpo will return again next year; to keep up with plans and news along the way, go to www.stocexpo.com.

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NEWS BULLETIN

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RUBIS ROLLS ON

Rubis Terminal has reported first quarter revenues of €55.2m, up 1.4 per cent on the prior year once the divestment of the Turkish operation is taken into account. Revenues were down slightly in France, partly as a result of the backwardation in the product markets, though biofuels, petrochemicals and agri-food business showed double-digit growth. The market in Spain continued to expand, largely in the biofuels and petrochemicals sectors, though the 6 per cent revenue growth recorded could have been higher but for strikes in the fuel distribution sector. The joint-venture business in Antwerp remained strong but, as utilisation is already close to 100 per cent, there was no growth; ITC Rubis is currently adapting some fuel oil tankage to handle biofuels ahead of a new storage contract due to start towards the end of this year. www.rubis-terminal.com AEGIS VOPAK GETS BIGGER

Vopak and Aegis Logistics have finalised their joint venture, Aegis Vopak Terminals, which has been expanded since the original announcement of the plan last year and will now include three extra terminal facilities.

Aegis Vopak will be the largest independent tank storage provider for LPG and chemicals in India, with 11 terminals in five strategic ports on both the west and east coasts of India, with a total capacity of some 1.5m m3.

Vopak says the joint venture is “well positioned” for further growth, which will concentrate on the LPG sector, where the Indian government is promoting its use as a household cooking fuel, but also on chemicals, LNG and industrial terminal opportunities. www.aegisindia.com

ago; after taking a $46.1m impairment charge on the $60m sale of its Point Tupper terminal in Canada at the end of April, net income dropped from $42.3m to $12.3m – absent that adjustment, it achieved a 36 per cent increase over the previous year’s first quarter.

NuStar experienced increased volumes on both its crude oil and refined products pipeline systems, reflecting improved demand for products, while its storage business delivered a 7 per cent increase in adjusted EBITDA compared to the fourth quarter, notwithstanding the sale of its terminals in the eastern US in October 2021.

Within the storage segment, the West Coast renewable fuels network is playing an ever-growing role, not only in helping facilitate the distribution of low-carbon renewable fuels but also in terms of revenue generation. “We expect our West Coast network’s revenue to continue to grow in 2022, as we complete two more projects at our Stockton terminal that will add renewable diesel storage capacity and expand our ethanol transportation solutions, which will increase the significant role NuStar plays in facilitating the West Coast’s transition

to low-carbon renewable fuels,” says Brad Barron, NuStar’s president/CEO. www.nustarenergy.com MAGELLAN MAKES HAY

Magellan Midstream Partners has posted first-quarter net income of $166m, down from $221m for the same period last year, which enjoyed a boost from the 2021 winter storms.

“Magellan generated solid financial results during the first quarter of 2022 that exceeded our initial expectations and improved our overall outlook for the year,” says Aaron Milford, who assumed the role of CEO on 1 May. Revenues from the transport and terminalling of refined products increased by $12m year-on-year, as a gradual economic recovery from pandemic conditions added to transport demand, though its storage business experienced lower utilisation rates following the expiry of a number of contracts. Similar trends were seen in crude oil transport and terminal activity.

Magellan says it now expects to spend some $70m this year to complete projects already committed, which will include improving the

GOOD START FOR NUSTAR

NuStar Energy has reported first quarter revenues of $409.9m, up from $361.6m a year

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connectivity of its crude oil terminal in Cushing, Oklahoma. The partnership also notes it is still awaiting regulatory approvals for the sale of its independent terminals located mainly in the south-eastern US; it agreed a deal in June 2021 to sell the 26 products terminals, which are not linked to its pipeline network, to Buckeye Partners for $435m. www.magellanlp.com BUCKEYE TO BUY BEAR HEAD

Buckeye Partners has agreed to acquire Bear Head Energy, which owns a fully permitted LNG and clean energy development project in Nova Scotia, Canada. The Bear Head project was originally planned as an LNG import/ export facility but is likely to be developed as a broader green energy site.

“Nova Scotia’s unique geographical characteristics give the region the potential to become one of the most productive renewable and green energy development areas in the world and, via this acquisition, it is our intention to develop a large-scale energy production, distribution and export hub that will offer our customers lower-carbon energy solutions, including LNG or other green fuels,” says Todd J Russo, Buckeye CEO. www.buckeye.com VTTI GOES FOR NEW ENERGIES

VTTI and EIT InnoEnergy’s European Green Hydrogen Acceleration Center (EGHAC) have agreed to jointly develop large-scale domestic hydrogen production facilities and hydrogen import facilities in Europe’s major ports. VTTI New Energies is already developing multiple new opportunities in hydrogen and hydrogen carrier fuels, renewable natural gas, waste-torenewables and carbon capture. It is supporting the Port of Rotterdam in its offer to supply Europe with 4.6 megatons of hydrogen by 2030.

In addition, VTTI recently commenced its first new energies investment with the start of the construction of a state-of-the-art bio-energy facility in the Netherlands, producing green gas and organic fertilisers. www.vtti.com

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

INGLESIDE GOES GREEN

Enbridge and Humble Midstream are to jointly develop a low-carbon hydrogen and ammonia production and export facility at the Enbridge Ingleside Energy Center (EIEC) near Corpus Christi, Texas, which Enbridge acquired from Modal Midstream this past October. Up to 95 per cent of the CO2 generated in the process will be sequestered in new carbon capture infrastructure, being developed by Enbridge, with feed gas expected to be supplied via Texas Eastern Transmission Pipeline, an Enbridge affiliate.

“This is a good example of how Enbridge is leveraging existing conventional energy assets and capabilities to extend growth and capitalize on low carbon opportunities in the energy transition,” says Colin Gruending, executive vice-president and president, Liquids Pipelines at Enbridge.

“The EIEC is already the premier export facility on the US Gulf Coast and will play an even greater role in global energy security and sustainability. We’re excited to work with Humble to further develop this opportunity.” www.enbridge.com

MORE JETTIES FOR KOOLE

Koole Terminal Botlek (KTB) has put its new barge jetty into operation, in collaboration with the Port of Rotterdam. “This new jetty is an exciting addition to our terminal and will allow two seagoing vessels or barges on one side and three barges on the other side,” the company says.

Construction of the new Jetty 7 was a major project, requiring the demolition and removal of existing quays and berths and the installation of hose towers and a pipe bridge fabricated at the contractor’s facility. Work is continuing, with the new Jetty 6 due to be commissioned by the end of the year.

“We are immensely proud of this milestone within this impressive, dynamic project,” says KTB’s project manager, Roel Kremer. “The fact that Jetty 7 is in use, while we continue to work on the project, poses a challenge to carry out the work as efficiently as possible. As a Koole team, we were very proud to see the first barge moored and being loaded at Jetty 7.” koole.com

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BONTEMPS ROULEZ

ODFJELL’S FIRST QUARTER results for this year show that the long anticipated upturn in the chemical tanker sector is now upon us.

With tight vessel supply, constrained by a lack of newbuilding activity and a return of swing tonnage to the healthy clean petroleum product (CPP) markets, rising demand is translating directly into higher vessel utilisation and better freight rates.

“The chemical tanker market improved considerably in the second half of the quarter, driven by strong fundamentals and also by the crisis caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,” says Kristian Mørch, Odfjell’s outgoing CEO. “The chemical tanker market has tightened further and we expect to report stronger results in the second quarter.”

The strength of that improvement can most

although there were fewer ship days, largely due to the divestment of four ships; adjusted for that, earnings were up by 3 per cent on the quarter.

FAVOURABLE FUNDAMENTALS Indeed, with the sale of four ships and ongoing port congestion around the world, Odfjell Tankers carried 4.3m tonnes of cargo in the first quarter, down from 4.4m tonnes in the previous period – though higher than the 4.1m tonnes carried in the same quarter a year ago.

Those factors reduced Odfjell’s activity levels in Asia and the Middle East, though the company notes that export volumes from the US continued to rise, both under COAs and on the spot market.

With the departure of swing tonnage back to

call at a Ukrainian port was in March 2020 and it has had very few Russian port calls in recent years, with those it did make involving fuel oil and gasoil. Odfjell makes it clear that it will not lift any Russian-related cargo during the current conflict and will not call at Russian ports.

Where the conflict has had a noticeable impact is in the vegoil market, as between them Russia and Ukraine account for almost 20 per cent of global seaborne trade, largely in sunflower oil. Other regions are stepping in to cover the shortfall, leading to higher tonne-mile demand and a consequent increase in freight rates, particularly in the Atlantic basin.

Overall, then, market fundamentals have tightened the chemical tanker market considerably. Whereas fleet utilisation has been below 90 per cent since 2011, Odfjell expects it to rise to 91 per cent this year and 95 per cent in 2023, a level not seen since 2008. Odfjell also notes that the current chemical tanker orderbook stands at just 5 per cent of the active fleet, which is below the historical average, and that rising steel prices are incentivising demolition activity; given the age profile of the active fleet, there could yet

clearly be seen in the contract of affreightment (COA) market, where renewals during the quarter were done at rates 7 per cent higher, the biggest movement since the fourth quarter of 2019. Total timecharter earnings at Odfjell Tankers came in at $136m, unchanged from the previous quarter,

the CPP market, Odfjell carried more vegoils, with rates stronger in this sector. Its exposure to the CPP market was also lower, following several quarters where it took cargoes for repositioning activities.

Odfjell has had very little direct impact from the Russia-Ukraine war; it notes that its last

be a further increase in vessel scrapping.

Fleet growth is therefore expected to continue to remain at a minimal level through to 2024.

Odfjell is, overall, confident that it will be able to record even stronger results in the second quarter. www.odfjell.com

RESULTS • RISING DEMAND, LOW FLEET GROWTH AND SUPPLY CHAIN DISTURBANCES ARE ALL CONTRIBUTING TO A MUCH STRONGER CHEMICAL TANKER MARKET, AS ODFJELL REPORTS

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infrastructure, and commitment to lowering emissions today is what we look for in a partner. By equipping our tankers with VM’s systems, we hope to prove to the industry that carbon capture is a viable and scalable option available right now.”

EASTERN PACIFIC SHIPPING (EPS), the Singapore-based ship operator, is to trial the use of onboard carbon capture technology on two of its medium-range (MR) product tankers in collaboration with Value Maritime (VM), a Rotterdam-based marine technology firm.

According to EPS, the use of the system on the tankers Pacific Cobalt and Pacific Gold will make them the largest oceangoing vessels to be fitted with the technology. EPS

transition,” says Cyril Ducau, CEO of EPS. “Carbon capture technology was missing in our existing portfolio of emission lowering solutions, which today consists primarily of alternative marine fuels. We believe that carbon capture technology holds significant promise for reducing emissions for existing and future oceangoing vessels.

“Coupled with alternative fuels, biofuels and other solutions, carbon capture is a crucial

LET’S DO IT NOW Value Maritime’s Filtree System is a prefabricated gas cleaning unit that filters sulphur and 99 per cent of particulate matter from ships’ exhausts. The system to be fitted to the two 49,700-dwt, 2020-built tankers includes a carbon capture module, which charges an onboard CO2 ‘battery’; the charged battery will be discharged during port calls, with the captured CO2 being either used by consumer industries or injected into carbon sequestration networks. The discharged battery is then returned to the vessel. This ‘plug and play’ concept is expected to capture up to 40 per cent of CO2 emissions, with further development having the potential to increase that to 90 per cent in the future.

“Bringing our filtering and carbon capture technology to the tanker market has been a goal of ours from the very beginning,” says Maarten Lodewijks, director and co-founder of Value Maritime. “Realising this vision with forward-thinking partners like Eastern Pacific Shipping is a dream come true. Together, we are making sustainable shipping and emission reduction for this segment no longer a pipe-dream. It’s happening today, and we couldn’t be prouder that it’s happening with EPS.” Installation of the first Filtree unit is expected to be completed by the end of this year, with the second due in first quarter 2023.

In addition to its carbon capture capabilities, the Filtree System also removes oil residue and particulate matter from the wash water, ensuring its pH value is neutralised and contributing to reducing the acidification of seawater.

hopes that the trial will prove the use of onboard carbon capture as a viable way of reducing emissions from shipping activities and it has already signed an option to equip three more of its vessels.

“Partnering with Value Maritime is a major step forward for EPS and the industry’s energy

step in accelerating the shipping industry’s decarbonisation efforts ahead of IMO targets,” Ducau adds. “After extensive research, we agreed that Value Maritime is the right partner to implement this solution and complement our own decarbonisation efforts.

Their passion for innovation, existing

EPS and Value Maritime are also exploring future collaborations, which may include specifying the Filtree System for a series of new-generation containerships that EPS will be building. www.epshipping.com. www.valuemaritime.com

STOP SMOKING NOW CARBON CAPTURE • TRUE SUSTAINABILITY MEANS NOT ONLY REDUCING EMISSIONS BUT CAPTURING THEM FOR RE-USE. EASTERN PACIFIC IS INVESTIGATING JUST SUCH A CONCEPT

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

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PLUG AND PLAY ELECTRIFICATION • THE SEARCH FOR EMISSION-FREE SHIPPING POINTS ALMOST INEVITABLY AT ELECTRIC POWER. STOLT TANKERS IS STARTING TO EXAMINE ITS VIABILITY ON CHEMICAL TANKERS

SEAGOING VESSELS SPEND a lot of time in port; for those on short-haul trades, port time can make up a substantial part of their life. And, while in port, they need to keep their auxiliary engines – usually powered by diesel – running, so that equipment can function, meals can be cooked and the lights kept on. For tanker vessels, in particular, there is also the need to be able to run the cargo pumps.

The focus on reducing greenhouse gas emissions from shipping has for some years now encouraged operators to look at ways to reduce the consumption of fuel while in port; there have been a number of projects in recent years, in areas as disparate as Scandinavia, the US, Singapore and Japan, offering shore power connections. But where deepsea chemical tankers are concerned, there are issues to be dealt with, not least the safety of electric power when a vessel is loading or discharging a potentially flammable cargo.

Stolt Tankers last month signed a memorandum of understanding with the Port of Rotterdam and Vopak; the three parties plan to conduct a six-month feasibility study on the use of shore power, involving a number of Stolt vessels calling at Vopak’s Botlek terminal. While in port, these ships will be able to switch off their diesel generators and connect to mains power, which ideally will come from renewable sources.

“The availability of shore-based power for our ships has the potential to greatly reduce the use of onboard diesel generators while ships are in port, resulting in a significant reduction of greenhouse gas emissions,” says Lucas Vos, president of Stolt Tankers. This will be another step in meeting Stolt’s ambitions to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by at least half by 2030.

SETTING STANDARDS As chemical tankers are required to comply with higher safety standards than many other types of vessels, the results of this study will be important for the whole chemical tanker industry. The project poses several significant technical hurdles, which make it unique. The aim of the feasibility study is to discover effective solutions to these challenges that can be used to form the basis of an agreed international standard.

Stolt Tankers says the installation of shore power for chemical tankers will only be viable if industry can agree on a single standard.

Shipowners will need confidence that their vessels will be able to safely and reliably connect to shore power at multiple points around the world before investing in the necessary onboard equipment.

Actually running a ship’s main engines on electric power is something of a leap away, at least for oceangoing vessels, though the use of hydrogen fuel cells may offer a route into that area. On the other hand, as battery packs are becoming larger and more powerful, it is certainly a viable option for vessels engaged in regular, coastal operations, and something that ferries in Norway and a few inland vessels on the Rhine are already using.

The first example of a fully-electric tanker went to work in Japan in April, when the new bunkering tanker Asahi provided fuel to MOL’s car carrier Victorious Ace in Yokohama. Asahi is fitted with large-capacity lithium ion batteries that power all aspects of its operations, including navigation within Tokyo Bay, cargo handling and berthing/unberthing.

Not only does this result in a zero-emission vessel, it also reduces the workload onboard by reducing engine maintenance requirements. www.stolt-nielsen.com www.asahi-tanker.com

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NEWS BULLETIN

TANKER SHIPPING

ETHANE ARRIVAL AT EPS

Eastern Pacific Shipping (EPS) has taken delivery of STL Yangtze, the first of six 98,000-m3 very large ethane carriers building against 15-year charters to Zhejiang Satellite Petrochemical. All six newbuildings feature dual-fuel propulsion capable of running on ethane.

“The delivery of STL Yangtze is a major milestone for EPS as it represents our commitment to maritime’s energy transition with our holistic alternative marine fuels programme to achieve the industry’s decarbonisation goals,” EPS says. www.epshipping.com.sg STOLT TAKES THREE

Stolt Tankers has agreed to acquire three Japanese-built stainless steel chemical tankers.

The 33,600-dwt units are expected to join its fleet in the third quarter this year.

“This acquisition is an excellent opportunity for Stolt Tankers to secure competitively priced tonnage ahead of an expected cyclical upturn in the chemical tanker industry,” says Lucas Vos, president of Stolt Tankers. “The newly added ships will lower our fleet age profile and can trade in any of our deep-sea lanes, increasing flexibility across our fleet. In the end, Stolt Tankers’ customers are the real winners in this deal, as these ships will support our proven platform that provides a high quality, reliable service offering.” www.stolt-nielsen.com

hull designs and the most resource-efficient machinery. They will work in the Gothia Tanker Alliance under the technical management of MF Shipping Group.

“The scope for the ‘R-Class’ series have been to build the most resource-efficient vessels available for the trade, with minimal environmental impact,” says Joakim Lund, CCO of Thun Tankers. “Thun’s long experience of building high performing quality vessels has been used in the design process. We have been combining this with a number of new features to further improve performance while reducing our climate footprint.” thuntankers.com

TWO MORE FOR THUN

Mitsubishi Shipbuilding and NYK Line have been granted Approval in Principle (AiP) by ClassNK for their large liquefied carbon dioxide carrier (LCO2) concept. While CO2 is often carried in small gas ships, scaling up – which will be needed to cope with future carbon capture projects – presents technical challenges in cargo containment design, which is sensitive to the temperature and pressure of

Thun Tankers has ordered another two 7,999-dwt product/chemical tankers, representing a further development of its recently built tonnage. The two vessels, to be built by regular partner Ferus Smit in the Netherlands and due for delivery in the first half of 2024, will feature adaptive propulsion systems to reduce fuel consumption, enhanced

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

BIGGER CARBON DIOXIDE CARRIER GETS THE NOD

CO2. The joint development project has been designed to overcome these issues and, the partners say, the resulting vessel design has been shown to comply with relevant regulations and standards.

NYK Line believes that the establishment of CO2 transport technology by large vessels will greatly contribute to the realisation of a carbonneutral society. NYK is working together with the MHI Group, which possesses a wide range of technologies in the CCUS value chain, to achieve the early realisation of not only small and medium-sized vessels but also large LCO2 carriers. Based on the design of the LCO2 carrier granted the AiP, NYK Line will further promote its participation in the CCUS value chain, such as by studying the design of the LCO2 carrier for each project, including further enlargement of the size of vessels. www.nyk.com BW LPG SPENDS ON DUAL FUEL

BW LPG has reported first quarter timecharter equivalent income of $130.8m, down 13 per cent on the first quarter 2021, with EBITDA also down, by 17 per cent, at $93.2m. The decline against year-earlier levels was due

TANKER SHIPPING 31

largely to a weaker spot market in the VLGC sector, along with three vessels going into drydock for retrofitting of dual-fuel engines.

That retrofitting programme is now complete, the company says, with 16 of its VLGCs now able to run on LPG. Using LPG as fuel has already reduced carbon emissions by between 15 and 20 per cent and cut sulphur emissions by more than 95 per cent.

Looking ahead, BW LPG says near-term rates remain strong, supported by healthy export volumes from the US Gulf and Middle East, but there are still volatilities due to geopolitical developments. The company says it has a more optimistic view of the VLGC market in 2023, based on steadily increasing trade volumes and fleet inefficiencies resulting from tighter emissions controls and Panama Canal transit delays.

BW LPG has also agreed the sale of its 2007-built VLGC BW Liberty, due to be delivered to new owners this month, with the deal expected to generate $25m in liquidity and a net book gain of $4m. www.bwlpg.com

Charles Maltby, resulted from the increased scale of the company’s fleet, along with improving market conditions and effective cost management.

That market improvement was supported by a strong market in the west, though in the near term the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and Covid-related lockdowns in China are impacting demand, affecting logistics chains, prompting rises in energy prices, and delivering negative margins in the petrochemical industry.

On the supply side, the market appears balanced with only a modest fleet growth expected this year.

“BW Epic Kosan has a strong foundation in scale and operational capability for future success and is working to optimise performance from its fleet, both in economic and environmental terms, while working with partners on projects in areas such as ammonia and CO2 shipping,” the company states. “The fine tuning of our fleet with asset transactions highlights the company’s ability to evolve its fleet positively and deliver profitable growth.” bwek.com

BWEK RIDES THE CHANGES

NAVIGATOR STRONG IN SPOT

BW Epic Kosan, the leading operator of small gas carriers, has reported first quarter revenues of $90.6m, up 51 per cent on the prior year though slightly down on the previous quarter, with net profit up 30 per cent year-on-year at $9.1m. The improvement, according to CEO

Navigator Holdings, which is active in the Handysize LPG tanker sector through Navigator Gas, has reported operating revenue of $119.8m for the three months to end March, compared to $85.7m in the previous year; net income rose from $2.8m to $27.0m.

Average timecharter rates increased strongly during the first quarter and indications suggest further improvement in the second quarter. The conflict in Ukraine has disrupted traditional supply sources, with alternative supplies adding to tonne-mile demand for carriers. In addition, US NGL production and exports continue to increase, with propane production up 7 per cent year-on-year in April and seaborne propane exports up by 14 per cent. Overall, increased US exports of LPG are providing incremental shipping demand, primarily for larger vessels, which is reducing competition within the various fleet size segments. navigatorgas.com AVANCE ENJOYS UPTURN

Avance Gas has reported a first-quarter operating profit of $34.8m, up from $21.6m in the previous quarter on the back of a strong VLGC market; net profit improved from $7.5m to $24.3m. The uplift was based on increasing LPG exports from the US, with March seeing an all-time high of 90 cargoes lifted, compared to the monthly average of 78 for 2021 as a whole – Avance notes this has continued into the second quarter, with 89 cargoes lifted in April. That added VLGC demand was compounded by inefficiencies, notably delays in China caused by Covidrelated closures and delays in transiting the Panama Canal after the removal of the pre-booking system.

Avance expects market conditions to remain largely unchanged for the rest of the year. US waterborne LPG exports are predicted to be 10 per cent higher than in 2021, backed by continued production increases and solid demand from the residential and petrochemical markets in Asia. Those strong fundamentals, together with Panama issues, are forecast to absorb the significant orderbook due for delivery next year, when as many as 47 new VLGCs are scheduled to arrive. www.avancegas.com

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for decades, yet industry as a whole appears stubbornly wedded to road transport.

There are some good reasons for that: road transport is supremely flexible, with pretty much 100 per cent coverage; it can be organised relatively easily and, especially with today’s telematics systems, highly transparent. Rail only reaches those parts of the world where there are tracks, and transport by water – inland or coastal – has similar limitations on accessibility. Both of those alternative modes have also been plagued with disruptions in recent years and are far less reliable overall than road transport.

EUROPE HAS SET itself some daunting targets in the EU Green Deal and ‘Fit for 55’ programmes. For the supply chain in particular, there are expectations that

money to put in place. Meeting the 2030 targets, in particular, will need more than that.

One obvious route to lower emissions is to move freight off the roads, as road transport

BRASS TACKS However, with rising fuel costs and a seemingly endemic shortage of heavy goods vehicle drivers in most of Europe (and other parts of the world), there is a growing appetite to use alternative modes. That is reinforced by the growing demands for sustainability in all operations; in the chemicals sector, manufacturers are acutely aware of the expectation of governments and the public about how they go about their business and they are increasingly expecting the same from their supply chain partners.

The European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) set out the issues that are holding back the shift away from road transport in a paper published this past January. It noted that the use of combined transport will be a “significant contributor” to achieving the EU Green Deal goal of reducing GHG emissions in transport by 90 per cent by 2050 but also said that measures must be taken – by policy makers, governments and the logistics industry – to further increase the attractiveness of combined transport.

Cefic says there are four main action areas that would help make combined transport the first choice for chemical producers: • It must focus at all times on satisfying its customers’ needs

greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions will be radically reduced by 2030 – less than ten years away – and yet further by 2050.

There is currently a lot of talk about the use of renewable energy and alternative, low- or zero-carbon fuels, but these routes to decarbonisation will take time and lot of

emits much more GHG per tonne-mile than do other modes of transport. Moving freight onto rail or making more use of inland and shortsea shipping could help in the drive to lower emissions – but that idea of a modal shift away from road is nothing new: industry and governments have been talking about it

• It must be competitive with road transport on cost • Adequate network infrastructure must be in place to access rail and enable the reliable and efficient execution of main legs • Transport chains must be fully digitised end to end, enabling seamless information

SEAMLESS DELIVERY MODAL SHIFT • COMBINED TRANSPORT WILL BE KEY TO REDUCING EMISSIONS FROM EUROPEAN FREIGHT TRANSPORT ACTIVITIES BUT WORK NEEDS TO BE DONE TO REMOVE BARRIERS TO GROWTH

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

TANKS & LOGISTICS 33

exchange and optimisation of operational execution.

WHERE ARE WE NOW? Cefic’s position is that the idea of combined transport is just not delivering on those imperatives. Rail freight performance is falling short of shippers’ expectations – and those of their customers. It lacks transparency and reliability, so shippers are reluctant to jeopardise their customer relations – they need to be confident that consignments arrive punctually. Inland waterway options are no better: there is a lack of integration between inland and deepsea shipping, compounded by port congestion. Lead times are a problem in both modes.



THE RAIL SECTOR HAS A LOT OF WORK TO DO IF IT IS TO REMOVE OUTDATED OPERATIONAL AND BUSINESS PRACTICES AND BECOME MORE ATTRACTIVE AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO TRANSPORT BY ROAD

As well as reliability and flexibility, cost is a major consideration for all shippers. They will only move willingly to combined transport if the end-to-end cost is lower than going by road all the way. At present, Cefic says, rail is only competitive over distances of more than 750 km – this needs to come down at least to 500 km.

There is also a link between reliability and cost: the current lack of reliability translates directly into low asset productivity; poor punctuality results in lower capacity utilisation in loading and unloading operations at shipper and consignee locations, and for terminal operators and rail and barge operators.

Cefic also repeats its calls to eliminate national rules and regulations that hinder seamless cross-border traffic; there needs to be better international cooperation and harmonisation in rail freight. It also warns strongly against the imposition of cabotage requirements for first- and last-mile legs of international combined transport operations.

Flexibility in the rail sector is further hampered by a shortage of terminal capacity and insufficient terminal connections, as well as a low frequency of departures. This is less of an issue in the main corridors but a major problem elsewhere, especially when the first or last mile to and from the terminal is a lengthy trip.

Some chemicals pose specific challenges: intermodal transport lacks the necessary infrastructure to handle temperaturecontrolled product in particular, Cefic says.

Terminals often have no means to heat/cool and monitor the temperature of goods during interim storage and transit.

Digitisation of the information flows through the supply chain has the potential to improve visibility and, therefore, reliability. However, Cefic says, the degree to which combined transport chains have moved away from manual processes is poor; this appears to be despite the best efforts of the European Chemical Transport Association (ECTA) as well as IT system providers. The lack of automation leaves drivers having to handle documentation, reducing their driving time and exacerbating the driver shortage. It also means there is a lack of visibility of where the gaps are in the system, making it difficult to identify where investment is needed. Also, Cefic notes, if industry does not move on the issue, there is a danger that rules will be imposed that end up increasing bureaucracy.

FOCUS ON THE TERMINAL As a trade organisation representing the chemical industry, Cefic’s paper clearly demonstrates the frustrations that shippers feel with the existing multimodal supply chains in Europe. But it is not that transport providers are unaware of the issues Cefic presents, nor that they are not trying to do something about them. On the other hand, they too are hampered by issues outside their control, especially the disruptions to alternative modes of transport caused by, among other things, maintenance programmes on the rail network, port congestion and variable water levels on the Rhine and other waterways.

Writing recently in Wascosa’s Infoletter magazine, Andreas Schulz, chairman of the

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board of the German Road-Rail Transhipment Company (Deutsche Umschlaggesellschaft Schiene-Strasse, DUSS), noted that the growth in combined transport that will be required to meet the German government’s plans – 6.8 per cent per year to 2030 – will bring major challenges, not least in terms of terminal capacity. “Are the facilities’ transhipment capacities sufficient to shift the forecast volumes to rail, and what are the strategic approaches needed to increase the capacity?” he asked.

Intermodal terminals are currently working at full capacity and there is an urgent need to expand existing facilities and build new sites.

DUSS, a subsidiary of DB Netz, Germany’s national railway infrastructure operator, has begun construction of 14 new terminals and is expanding another two, with all the work due to be completed by 2030. But Schulz says that Germany is leading the way compared to other countries. “When you consider that it takes five to ten years from start to finish to get a new terminal ready for operations, it is clear that investing in ‘steel and concrete’ will not be enough to cover capacity needs by 2030,” he added. That means that, to close the capacity gap, it will be necessary to make more productive use of existing infrastructure.

SAME SPACE, MORE CARGO As things stand, Schulz explained, terminals tend to be utilised in line with customer demand. “Most users want to have the transport done overnight, coupled with a lengthy slot throughout the day for early pick-up and delivery in the afternoon,” he said. That means that demand peaks through the day, often exceeding handling capacity, while there are other times of the day when cranes are under-utilised. Spreading demand more evenly would free up capacity and reduce process costs in terms of maintenance and throughput times. “Synchronising traffic leads to increased productivity, not just for the

 EFFECTIVE MULTIMODAL TRANSPORT NEEDS MORE TERMINAL CAPACITY AT THE RIGHT PLACES

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

terminal but also for the upstream and downstream stages of the chain,” he added.

To do that involves all parties involved being genuinely committed to the change. Shippers need to understand that terminals are not storage facilities or buffers for disrupted delivery chains. When containers lie idle for long periods at a terminal, it results in poor quality in the supply chain and a reduction in capacity.

The second driving force that can increase the productivity of terminals is greater digitisation of operations, which will reduce processing times for road and rail vehicles.

“The shorter the processing time is for a truck and the faster that trains can be prepared, the more transhipments can be carried out,” Schulz pointed out. “This requires gates with video monitoring and automated identification of loading units as well as a detection system for dangerous goods and damage. Outdated dispatch counters also need to be phased out for dangerous goods and for customs

clearance, and paperless dispatch must become a standard process.”

DUSS has piloted a ‘slot management’ system at its Ulm terminal, which it plans to roll out to all its locations this year. Through this system, the freight forwarder or haulier can check the availability of their loading unit online, add data and send a notification when it arrives. After arrival at the terminal it is automatically identified at the gate and guided through the terminal with no need for paperwork or even for the driver to leave the cab.

One other idea DUSS is working on is automating its crane systems, with the aim of achieving consistency and pre-sorting to save time. This system will be installed on all its new sites and some of its major existing facilities will be upgraded.

TAKING A LEAD Leading combined transport operator Hupac is taking measures into its own hands. Having

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SECTION SLUG 35

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witnessed an increase of 10.7 per cent in the number of road consignments carried by rail last year (though noting that the 2021 figure was affected by the Covid pandemic), it is focusing on investment in both physical and digital assets.

“Combined transport is a growth market whose development is strongly influenced not only by demand but also by the available capacities and the quality of the services offered,” explains Hans-Jörg Bertschi, chairman of the board. The Swiss modal shift policy and the European Green Deal are creating strong demand impulses, as are the increasing bottlenecks on the roads. On the infrastructure side, the required capacity is gradually being created through the expansion of the freight transport corridors.

Hupac is forecasting annual volume growth of 7 per cent for the next four years; with forecast annual economic growth of 2 per cent, this implies an increasing shift of traffic off the roads.

Hupac is also aware of the need for shippers to have confidence in combined transport, which means stabilising quality on the rail network despite the intensive construction activity on transalpine routes.

“We will manage the performance of our network even more actively in the future,” says Michail Stahlhut, CEO. “We also expect a corresponding effort from our rail partners.

Our declared goal is quality leadership. If the quality is right, traffic growth will come all by itself.”

LOOK AHEAD Hupac is also aware that the long-term development opportunities for combined transport depend to a large extent on the course set by transport policy. To that end, it has partnered with industry associations and gained the support of Swiss officials for greater quality and capacity in the rail network. Earlier this year, the Swiss parliament began negotiations with France

 GREATER DIGITISATION CAN HELP IMPROVE UTILISATION OF TERMINAL ASSETS

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

over the electrification of the WörthStrasbourg axis to upgrade the left bank of the Rhine to corridor parameters. Hupac hopes this will eliminate the biggest bottleneck on the TEN-T corridor from Rotterdam to Genova.

What Hupac terms a ‘corridor perspective’ rather than narrow national thinking will help focus development on the needs of the freight transport industry and its shipper clients. There is a need, the company says, to interconnect the various TEN-T freight corridors to increase resilience and offer alternative routes when closures are in place. In addition, freight transport capacity must be secured through international network utilisation planning as well as giving priority for freight traffic over long distances at times of operational disruptions and irregularities. That can be alleviated through

international coordination in planning construction work.

Hupac is also investing in the digitisation of its operations as a high priority. Customers now expect milestones and ETA data to be made available immediately throughout the entire intermodal chain, without gaps or errors and in real time. This requires a standardisation of the data formats in the European combined transport market.

Together with partners, Hupac has been investing in the EDIGES consortium since 2019 to drive forward cross-sector digitalisation. A joint operating company will be established this year to promote the use and further development of the system as an open platform. cefic.org www.hupac.ch www.wascosa.ch

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38 TANKS & LOGISTICS

allows measurement and location data to be transmitted across countries around the world without data loss. The ATEX-certified unit is also powered by solar energy, eliminating the need for battery replacement.

GRILLO-WERKE AG HAS equipped its entire fleet of tank containers used for the transport of sulphur dioxide with telematics systems from Intermodal Telematics (IMT).

Adding the IMT units provides global coverage of Grillo’s tanks, without gaps in connectivity and in real time. That is proving extremely valuable at a time when supply chains are stressed and disruptions can

and inefficient idle times can also be displayed, monitored and reduced in real time.”

Grillo-Werke opted to fit IMT’s CLT20-Ex communication and location terminal. This monitors each tank’s geo-position and physical movement (shock and motion); it also acts as the central data hub for all IMT sensors mounted on the tank and sends all

EASY TO USE Another important consideration for Grillo was that the system should be easy to accommodate within its existing IT network.

“What was important to us when choosing the telematics provider was the intuitive handling of the devices,” Sehlhoff adds. “With the very easy-to-use IMT Pairing App, it was possible for us to independently connect the IMT technology to our loading unit via our mobile devices in just a few steps and immediately make it visible on the platform.”

That is just what IMT claims for the app, which it says allows pairing to be carried out anywhere in the world, on site or at a depot, in four steps. After pairing, all relevant data from the tank container, rail wagon or chassis equipped with the CLT20-Ex unit can be seen on the IMT Web Application.

The data provided by the newly installed IMT system is a great benefit not just to GrilloWerke itself but also to its clients. “Thanks to the IMT technology we can provide our customers with important data within the logistics chain,” Sehlhoff says. “Precise analyses of downtimes and loading times can be displayed, controlled and reduced in real time and thus enable Grillo-Werke an optimal and cost-efficient fleet management.”

Based in Duisburg, Germany, Grillo-Werke specialises in zinc metallurgy and sulphur chemistry. It has other production sites at Frankfurt’s Industriepark Höchst, Goslar and in Belgium and France. Its sulphuric acid plant in Frankfurt produces liquid sulphur

happen anywhere, any time.

“This allows us to identify bottlenecks at an early stage and, if necessary, provide replacement tank containers at short notice,” says Dirk Sehlhoff, product manager for sulphur dioxide at Grillo-Werke. “Thanks to the IMT geofencing function, loading times

collected measurement data to the IMT platform every five minutes.

The CLT20-Ex features a four-way modem, said by IMT to be unique in the industry, which addresses all current and future cellular networks worldwide, from 2G to 5G as well as LTE-M machine type communication. This

trioxide, oleum and sulphuric acid at 96 and 98 per cent concentrations; it has a sulphuric acid recycling unit at Duisburg where it produces sulphur dioxide, using a process developed internally. www.intermodaltelematics.com www.grillo.de

SO MUCH INFORMATION DIGITISATION • IMT HAS WON ANOTHER MAJOR CLIENT FOR ITS TELEMATICS SOLUTIONS, THE LATEST CUSTOMER BEING GERMAN SULPHUR SPECIALIST GRILLO-WERKE

HCB MONTHLY |JUNE 2022

SECTION SLUG 39

EQUIPMENT AVAILABLE FOR LEASE OR SALE WORLDWIDE

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40

NEWS BULLETIN

TANKS & LOGISTICS

M&H JOINS THE NETWORK

M&H Logistics has joined the Hazchem Network, the UK-wide ADR pallet consortium, covering much of Scotland. M&H takes over the areas previously covered by Burns Express, which has decided to concentrate on other business. M&H has six depots in Scotland and another four in northern England and the Midlands.

“We are delighted to add a new strength to our core services we provide our customers with,” says Anna Kozlowska, deputy managing director of M&H Logistics. “Whilst we already offered ADR delivery and collection service in some of our Scottish depots, we have now expanded it across the whole of Scotland.

“Joining The Hazchem Network has been an exciting prospect for us and, having seen immediate synergies with the management teams and quality of service required, we have made a step forward to deliver the goods. We are now able to offer a UK-wide and Irish ADR service to all of our customers, including a parcel service,” Kozlowska adds. www.mandhlogistics.com hazchemnetwork.co.uk RHENUS GOES FOR GAS

Rhenus Freight Logistics has acquired four LNG-powered trucks to handle its contract with Evonik in Germany, moving about ten loads per week between Evonik’s chemical production site in Essen and the Rhenus warehouse in Düsseldorf. The Stralis Natural Power trucks from Iveco are also being used on the daily shuttle between Rhenus sites in Düsseldorf and Hilden.

“As a logistics specialist, we’re constantly following the developments related to sustainable drive technologies,” says Jörg Fuchs, freight forwarding manager at Rhenus Freight Logistics. “We’re therefore delighted that we’ll be able to continue pressing ahead with this process ourselves by using LNG trucks in

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

future.” Another two LNG-powered trucks have already been ordered and Rhenus plans to expand the fleet further, using the vehicles on other routes in Europe. www.rhenus.group

including tank containers for liquids, gases and powders; freight containers; refrigerated and temperature-controlled units; and specials for bulky and heavy items. www.seacoglobal.com

SEACO SHIFTS IN UAE

LEGEND OPENS IN DUBAI

Seaco DMCC has relocated to a new Middle East regional office in Dubai, the better to serve the rapidly expanding local market, especially for e-commerce goods. “Seaco is strongly positioned as the most diversified container leasing company in the world and our Dubai representation will enable us to ensure we have excellence and know-how in the region to serve our diversified market,” says Christophe Cariou, marketing manager at Seaco. “The significant regional importance of Seaco’s tank container business and container resale activities was one of the drivers behind relocation of the regional office to Dubai with its time zone and close proximity to customers, key vendors and industry partners.”

The Dubai office will provide local and global customers with the full portfolio of equipment,

Legend Group has opened a new office in Dubai under Legend Shipping LLC, in line with its goal of strengthening its global presence and providing a strategic base to serve customers in the Middle East and North Africa. The new operation will offer logistics solutions for a range of freight, including bulk liquid chemicals, dry bulk and consumer perishables.

“This is an important step for Legend Group in expanding our presence into the Middle East,” says CK Than, founder and CEO of Legend Group. “The Dubai office will enable us to provide better and more efficient logistics services to our customers and help us build strong relationships with key players in the region.” www.legendlogisticsltd.com

TANKS & LOGISTICS 41

BROEKMAN BLOWS COLD

Broekman Logistics has upgraded and expanded its cold storage facilities for hazardous goods at the Blauwhoef warehouse in Antwerp, Belgium. It has switched from the traditional R-134a refrigerant to a new installation that uses carbon dioxide. Work has also involved tripling the area available, partly to cope with additional demand from existing customers but also to allow for an expansion in its client base.

“The cooled storage in combination with our very extensive Seveso permit offers a unique opportunity to our customers to store their very specific ADR products with us in a cooled environment,” Broekman states. www.broekmanlogistics.com H ESSERS TURNS A SOD

H Essers has broken ground on its new chemical warehouse at the Kristalpark III industrial estate in Lommel, Belgium. The new site will provide 150,000 m2 of capacity for the storage of hazardous goods, expanding the company’s warehouse space in Europe by some 25 per cent. “The rising demand from both our regular and new chemical customers means that even our brand-new Dry Port site in Genk is now fully booked, while we are still continuing

to build there. That is why we had to look for extra capacity in the region,” says Salvatore Napolitano, CPO at H Essers.

“The location is a perfect match with H Essers’ plans to increasingly invest in the synchromodality of our transport networks,” Napolitano adds. “We were already operating in Lommel with warehousing, transport, planning and garages at our site on the Balendijk. The site at Kristalpark III fits in perfectly, because it opens up routes to the Netherlands and Germany. Other logistic developments in the immediate vicinity, such as an inland terminal and a rail terminal for goods transport, are also on the cards.”

Customers are already showing interest in new capacity and some have already reserved part of the warehouse capacity. “We are very excited about the next phase of our collaboration with H Essers in Lommel,” says Benjamin Ravaud, regional supply chain project manager at Givaudan. “H Essers’ proven ability to build and efficiently run state-of-the-art warehouses with the highest quality and safety standards was an important element for Givaudan. Our partnership will allow us to optimise our logistics network while reducing our carbon footprint and improving service to our customers. The joined project team is

already working hard to make this a success for both Givaudan and H Essers.” www.essers.com MORE TANKS FOR RAFFLES

Raffles Lease is responding to strong demand for tank containers from logistics firms by placing an order for 2,750 new tanks for delivery from the end of the second quarter onwards. The new tanks feature a range of types and capacities, including both swap bodies and 20-foot tanks in sizes from 25,000 to 35,000 litres. Many of the units will be fitted with specialised components, including baffles and ground-operated vapour return lines.

“Raffles Lease continues to follow its strategy to continuously build tank containers designed and constructed using the latest innovations in industry to serve its customers,” the company states. raffleslease.com MORE REACH FOR DINGES

Dinges Logistics has expanded handling capacity at its hazardous goods storage site in Grünstadt in the Rheinland-Pfalz region of Germany with the arrival of a new ‘Super Gloria’ reachstacker from Kalmar. The new equipment offers the possibility to place containers both lengthwise and crosswise with 1-metre negative lift, and five-high stacking of tank containers; the Super Gloria can handle 32 tonnes even on the fourth row.

“Previously, the challenge was that we didn’t have a reachstacker with negative lift, so we couldn’t fully utilise the space available in our hazardous goods storage when positioning tank containers,” explains Ingo Dinges, owner and managing director of Dinges Logistics.

“Weighing up the cost-benefit aspects showed us that Super Gloria had clear advantages for us, and that is why we ultimately opted for the machine.” dinges-logistics.de

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INCIDENT LOG ROAD/RAIL/AIR INCIDENTS Date

Location

6/4/22

6/4/22

Vehicle Type

Substance

Details

nr Granite City, road tanker Illinois, US

gasoline, diesel

Fuel South Express tank truck with 9,000 gal (34 m ) fuel overturned, spilling around 8,000 gal during heavy rain; state sued operator for several violations and cost of cleanup and remediation; no injuries in crash

Belleville Ns-Dem

nr Farmington, road tanker W Virginia, US

hydrochloric acid

Driver noticed cargo leaking from tank along Husky Highway, pulled over; responders said some 4,000 gal (15 m3) hydrochloric acid had spilled, possibly from faulty valve; road closed, nearby residents evacuated

WDTV

12/4/22 Barkeyville, road tankers fuels Pennsylvania, US

Fire broke out in engine or cab of tank truck awaiting despatch at Heath Oil depot; fire spread to cargo and then to six more tankers; Route 8 closed, 40 fire departments on scene; two fire crew injured

Explore Clarion

13/4/22 Yulara, truck oil NT, Australia

One of four IBCs carrying unspecified oil on flatbed truck ruptured, spilling oil to road near entry to Uluru national park; local companies provided earth moving vehicles to create embankment to prevent spread

Perth Now

13/4/22 Napa, road tanker LPG California, US

Driver of propane tanker was injured after truck hit tree on side of road; some leak of LPG from tank caused road to be closed to traffic; no other risk to public

Napa Vall Register

19/4/22 Nashville, road tanker ethanol Tennessee, US

CSX freight train struck Speedway tank truck on crossing, rupturing cargo tank; ethanol flowed down street, prompting evacuations; some 5,000 gal (19 m3) ethanol recovered from tanker, much of spill evaporated

WTVF

19/4/22 Summit county, road tanker peroxide Utah, US

Tank truck overturned on I-80 causing closure of highway in Silver Creek Canyon, shelter-in-place order for local residents; cargo said to be a liquid peroxide

Fox

22/4/22 Ajegunle, road tanker gasoline Lagos, Nigeria

Road tanker spilled part of its 45,000-litre gasoline load on approach to filling station; locals rushed to collect spilling fuel, sparking fire and explosion; one person killed, vehicles, nearby shops damaged

Vanguard

28/4/22 Tema, road tanker LPG Ghana

Road tanker with full load of LPG overturned on Tema motorway, landing in median strip; driver said he had swerved to avoid another vehicle; road closed during response; fire crews played water on tank to keep it cool

Graphic Online

27/4/22 Henry county, road tanker nitrogen Kentucky, US

I-71 closed after multi-vehicle collision; pictures appeared to show one truck burned out after running into rear of tank truck carrying nitrogen, which was offloaded to battery vehicle; no injuries reported

CDL Life

30/4/22 Kumasi, road tanker fuel Ashanti, Ghana

Road tanker with unspecified fuel cargo heading for BOST depot at Kaase overturned; no leak reported but some locals managed to siphon fuel into buckets before police arrived; no injuries reported

Modern Ghana

30/4/22 Nowshera, road tankers fuels Peshawar, Pakistan

Fire broke out among road tankers parked at Tarujaba oil depot; at least 20 tankers were completely gutted in the blaze, though some 130 were undamaged; few drivers on site at time as they had gone home for Eid

Dawn

1/5/22

Two fuel tankers, owned by Super Soy Commercial Centre, caught fire after accident; first tanker overturned on downhill stretch of road, second ran into its rear; both driver hospitalised with injuries

Philippine Star India

Malungon, road tankers Sarangani, Philippines

diesel, gasoline

Source 3

MARINE/INLAND WATERWAY INCIDENTS Date

Location

Details

Source

6/4/22

Algiers, Tolga ̶ Algeria

Ferry Jean Nicoli struck Algerian tanker (5,100 dwt, 2021) berthed in port of Algiers; not known if tanker was in cargo at time but it suffered damage to stern and superstructure; ferry lost control on arrival in port

MENA FN

Product tanker (35,400 dwt, 1999), arriving at Chittagong, presumably with cargo, collided with container ship Haian City departing for Singapore; both vessels damaged; some containers lost; no pollution reported

FleetMon

14/4/22 Liverpool, CL Sha He scrap UK

Fire broke out in cargo hold of bulk carrier (63,100 dwt, 2020) loading scrap at Canada Dock in Kirkdale; shoreside fire services, tugs fought fire, brought it under control within a few hours

FleetMon

15/4/22 off Sumatra, Indonesia

CMA CGM unknown Lisa Marie

Containership (11,000 teu, 2017), from Jeddah for Port Klang, suffered fire in one or more containers north of Banda Aceh; crew managed to extinguish fire, vessel resumed journey; identity of cargo not known

FleetMon

16/4/22 Taiwan Strait, Chuang Yi unknown Hong Kong

Product/chemical tanker (10,000 dwt, 2000) suffered explosion, fire some 170 nm off Hong Kong; one crew killed, six injured, some seriously; tanker thought to be involved in bunkering or lightering operations

FleetMon

16/4/22 Gulf of Gabes, Xelo ̶ Tunisia

Bunker tanker (1,010 dwt, 1977) sank after running into problems in bad weather; crew were evacuated; divers found no leak from wreck, which was later said to have been without cargo

Urdu Point

19/4/22 Point Comfort Bay, shore tank Texas, US

Some 16,800 gal (400 bbl, 63.6 m3) ammonium polyphosphate fertiliser leaked to bay, presumably from facility ashore; USCG responding

Incident News

Two crew collapsed during cargo tank work on product/chemical tanker (45,500 dwt, 2011) at IJmuiden anchorage; one died before being taken ashore; early reports of explosion were inaccurate

FleetMon

14/4/22 off Chittagong, Bangladesh

Vessel

Substance

Orion unknown Express

ammonium phosphate

20/4/22 Amsterdam, NCC Safa crude oil Netherlands

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

SAFETY 43

MISCELLANEOUS INCIDENTS Date

Location

Plant type

Substance

Details

Source

6/4/22

Wichita, building propane Kansas, US

Major fire broke out in unidentified building, reportedly during the transfer of propane bottles to or from vehicle; building badly damaged, along with other vehicles; fire spread to nearby fields; one person injured

KWCH

11/4/22 Mosogar, pipeline natural gas Delta, Nigeria

Explosion, fire on gas line running along Warri/Benin expressway caused panic among local residents; police said blast was due to a leak from the ageing line, rather than vandalism or theft

Sahara Reporters

12/4/22 Shiv Puri, MP, India

Five people were killed by explosion in firecracker unit operating illegally in residential area of Badarwas; owner had licence for another unit in Sumela; investigation underway

News18

Fire broke out in NextGen commercial fuelling facility, involving “several thousand gallons” of unspecified fuel products; some material flowed via storm drain to Bear Creek

Incident News

15/4/22 Salina Cruz, oil refinery gasoline Oaxaca, Mexico

Fire broke out in gasoline storage tank at Pemex refinery, sending dense black smoke over neighbourhood; operator brought fire under control without injuries

Reuters

17/4/22 Sonipat, Haryana, India

chemical chemicals plant

Massive fire broke out at chemical factory in Kundli area of Sonipat; local fire department was quickly on scene, along with crews from Delhi; cause of fire under investigation

ANI

18/4/22 Plaquemine, Louisiana, US

chemical chlorine plant

Shelter-in-place ordered, roads closed after leak of chlorine following fire at Olin Chemical plant, a unit in Dow Chemical complex; fire was extinguished within an hour but work to stop chlorine leak took longer

NBC

21/4/22 Lalitpur, Nepal

oxygen oxygen plant

One person killed, seven injured by explosion during refilling of cylinder at Sagarmatha Oxygen Plant in Patan industrial area; nearby houses damaged by blast; several other cylinders were thrown around the site

BNN

23/4/22 Abaezi, oil refinery oil Imo, Nigeria

Some 110 people died after explosion at illegal refinery; dozens of people thought to be working at the site, many more in the vicinity; some tried to flee but were overtaken by fire; security to be stepped up

BBC

25/4/22 Pullman, Washington, US

Some 1,200 gal (4,500 litres) diesel spilled from crack in bottom of 10,000-gal tank at Four Star Supply site, most reaching nearby Palouse River; booms deployed downstream; other operators urged to check their tanks

The Columbian

fireworks firecrackers factory

14/4/22 Medford, fuel depot Oregon, US

petroleum products

farm supply diesel depot

44

THE LATE SHOW

THE JOINT MEETING of the RID Committee of Experts and the Working Party on the Transport of Dangerous Goods (WP15) of the UN Economic Commission for Europe (ECE) held in spring 2022 session in Bern from 14 to 18 March. The meeting was chaired by Claude Pfauvadel (France) with Silvia García Wolfrum (Spain) acting as vice-chair; it was attended, either in person or virtually, by representatives of 22 states, the European Commission, the EU Agency for Railways (ERA), the Organisation for Cooperation between Railways (OSJD) and 18 nongovernmental organisations.

The role of the Joint Meeting is primarily

In more normal times, this spring session prior to the new editions of the regulations entering into force in 2023 would focus primarily on finalising the details of amendments already agreed. However, in light of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and the difficulties it has presented to regulators, there was rather more work outstanding and some significant new amendments were agreed at the session. These do, however, remain to be formally adopted by the relevant regulatory bodies at their upcoming meetings.

TALK ABOUT TANKS While there have been some changes to the

goods in tanks, starting with some issues held over pending final decisions, although not all were taken to a conclusion.

The first two items related to the new breed of extra-large tank containers. The first issue to be resolved was actually what is to be taken to be meant by “extra-large”. On the basis of a paper from the European Chemical Industry Council (Cefic) and the International Union of Wagon Keepers (UIP), it was decided to add the following definition in 1.2.1, after the definition of ‘Tank-container’: In addition: “Extra-large tank-container” means a tank-container with a capacity of more than 40 000 litres.

That new definition had been amended from the original proposal to remove specific reference to rail transport, highlighted in an informal paper from the UK, which also affected the proposed change in 6.8.2.1.18. In the right-hand column, third paragraph, “, or 4.5 mm if the tank is an extra-large tankcontainer” is added after “3 mm”. That has

to discuss items of common interest for the regulatory bodies that cover the transport of dangerous goods by rail (RID), road (ADR) and inland waterway (ADN) with the aim of ensuring harmonisation – insofar as is possible – to facilitate multimodal international transport.

way that the Joint Meeting has been operating during the pandemic – and the UN ECE Secretariat is optimistic that a return to normal working practices in the second half of this year – some things remain the same. As ever, the session began with discussion of topics involving the transport of dangerous

necessitated a new transitional provision, which appears at 1.6.4.62: Extra-large tank-containers constructed before 1 July 2023 in accordance with the requirements in force up to 31 December 2022, but which do not meet the requirements of 6.8.2.1.18, third paragraph, concerning the

MULTIMODAL • THE JOINT MEETING OF RID/ADR/ADN EXPERTS MAKE A SURPRISING NUMBER OF DECISIONS AT ITS SPRING SESSION, MANY OF THEM AFFECTING THE 2023 REGULATORY TEXTS

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

REGULATIONS 45

minimum thickness of the shell applicable as from 1 January 2023 may still be used.

The International Organisation for International Carriage by Rail (OTIF) summarised earlier discussions on the pressure resistance of closures on extra-large tank containers and provided a formal proposal, which was agreeable. That involves an additional two paragraphs after the first sentence in the right-hand column of 6.8.2.2.4: These openings for extra-large tankcontainers intended for the carriage of substances in the liquid state which are not divided by partitions or surge plates into sections of not more than 7 500 litres capacity shall be provided with closures designed for a test pressure of at least 0.4 MPa (4 bar).

Hinged dome covers shall not be permitted for extra-large tank-containers with a test pressure of more than 0.6 MPa (6 bar).

Again, that has necessitated a new transitional provision, this time at 1.6.4.61, to

 GROWING VOLUMES OF LNG AND HYDROGEN IN TRANSPORT PRESENT NEW HAZARDS

allow tank-containers built before 1 July 2023 in accordance with current provisions to continue to be used.

On the subject of transitional measures, OTIF had spotted two that will no longer be relevant after the end of this year and the Joint Meeting agreed that they should be deleted. This applies to 1.6.3.3.3 and 1.6.3.17.

The UK returned with a proposal following up on earlier, unfinished discussions about the need, if any, to include minimum thicknesses for partitions or surge plates in tanks. Time constraints had made it impossible to return to this at the September 2021 session. The matter received a similar fate now, with the Joint Meeting decided this should be held over to appear in the 2025 edition of ADR. A rather more urgent matter was presented by the Netherlands, which again referred back to earlier discussions. This related to the need to be able to stop the uncontrolled outflow of gases due to unintended events during the handling of tanks by means of an instant/ automatic stop valve. The issue had arisen after safety advisers involved in the LNG transport chain had found that new tank

designs are no longer being provided with automatic closing valves, possibly due to a misinterpretation of the existing provisions.

Its paper stressed that, in the event of the rupture of pipework or hoses, or in a fire, it is essential that the flow of gas can be stopped immediately. The Netherlands noted that the carriage of refrigerated flammable gases is nothing new but that changes in the energy mix mean that more LNG is now being carried and, in the future, it is likely that liquefied hydrogen will become a more common cargo.

While Chapter 6.8 is already currently under review, it was felt that this issue was so important it should be addressed independently.

The Joint Meeting agreed and adopted a new special provision in 6.8.4(b): TE26 All filling and discharge connections, including those in the vapour phase, of tanks intended for the carriage of flammable refrigerated liquefied gases shall be equipped with an instant closing automatic stop-valve (see 6.8.3.2.3) as close as possible to the tank.

‘TE26’ is added in column (13) of the Dangerous Goods List against UN Nos 1038 (ethylene, refrigerated liquid), 1961 (ethane, refrigerated liquid), 1966 (hydrogen,

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46

refrigerated liquid), 1972 (methane, refrigerated liquid – aka LNG), 3138 (ethylene, acetylene and propylene mixture, refrigerated liquid) and 3312 (gas, refrigerated liquid, flammable, nos).

This change has also necessitated two transitional measures: 1.6.3.59 Tank-wagons/Fixed tanks (tankvehicles) and demountable tanks constructed before 1 July 2023 in accordance with the requirements in force up to 31 December 2022, but which do not, however, meet the requirements of special provision TE 26 of 6.8.4 (b) applicable as from 1 January 2023 may continue to be used.

1.6.4.63 Tank-containers constructed before 1 July 2023 in accordance with the requirements in force up to 31 December 2022, but which do not, however, meet the requirements of special provision TE26 of 6.8.4 (b) applicable as from 1 January 2023 may continue to be used.

At this stage, no provisions have been agreed to require the retrofitting of stopvalves but this will be considered based on the outcome of the development of 6.8.3.2.3.

The UK continued to press its case for the inclusion in the new 1.8.6.2.1 of reference to the standard EN ISO/IEC 17065:2012 Conformity assessment – Requirements for bodies certifying products, processes and services. This would apply to the accreditation of inspection bodies for the purpose of authorisation and surveillance of in-house inspection services. The Joint Meeting confirmed that WP15 and the RID Committee of Experts’ standing working group had addressed the issue but also noted the comments that the issue being addressed is outside the scope of that standard. Rather, EN ISO/IEC 17021-1:2105 and a document from the European co-operation for Accreditation (EA) were more relevant. The Joint Meeting agreed to circulate a copy of this document to experts and to resume discussion at the next session.

The UK also commented that the notes to the new 6.8.1.5.1(a) and 6.8.1.5.4(a) adopted at the previous session of the Joint Meeting could be misinterpreted; it had brought the problem to an inter-sessional meeting of the informal working group on the inspection and

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

certification of tanks (the ‘London Group’) and offered an amendment. However, that meeting felt that the UK’s suggestion might be consistent with the application of the amendments in RID but not necessarily so in the case of ADR. It asked the Joint Meeting to consider the issue, but that body felt that the general note to 6.8.1.5 in both RID and ADR is sufficient and prevails to both new notes.

FROM THE TANK EXPERTS Other matters pertaining to the use of tanks in the transport of dangerous goods were remitted to the Working Group on Tanks, which met for two days during the Joint Meeting session in a hybrid format.

The Working Group agreed with an argument from France that the requirements of 1.8.7.2.2.1 on the information that should be annexed to the type approval certificate would benefit from clarification. The Joint Meeting also agreed and amended the text of 1.8.7.2.2.1(f) to read: The data contained in the documents for the type-examination according to 1.8.7.8.1,

 NEW PROVISIONS HAVE BEEN AGREED ON THE CHECKING OF WELDS IN TANK SHELLS

necessary for the identification of the type and variation, as defined by the relevant standards.

The documents, or a list identifying the documents, containing the data shall be included or annexed to the certificate; The Working Group had been asked to consider two papers on non-destructive checks of welds, on which the Joint Meeting had failed to reach consensus. This was meat and drink to the tank experts, who agreed some changes. In the second paragraph of 6.8.2.1.23, the last sentence is deleted and footnotes 6 and 7 are deleted. A new paragraph is added after the paragraph f or λ=1: The non-destructive checks of the circumferential, longitudinal and radial welds shall be carried out by radiography or by ultrasound. Other welds allowed in the appropriate design and construction standard shall be tested using alternative methods in accordance with the relevant standard(s) referenced in 6.8.2.6.2. The checks shall confirm that the quality of the welding is appropriate to the stresses.

The Netherlands contended that the applicability of 4.3.2.2.3, concerning the maximum filling degree for substances carried at temperatures of 50°C or above, is

REGULATIONS 47

limited by its wording, which appears to prohibit an increase in temperature above the filling temperature. Its paper offered a clarification, which met with general support, and was adopted by the Joint Meeting for entry into force in 2025.

The International Union of Railways (UIC) questioned whether the holding time for refrigerated liquid gases should also be applicable to empty uncleaned tanks. The Working Group felt that it would be very difficult to determine a holding time in such cases but the European Industrial Gases Association (EIGA) noted that it is currently working on this question for the guidance document that is referenced in footnote 4 to 4.3.3.5(e). UIC and EIGA will work together and report back.

A number of other matters were brought to the Working Group to sound out opinions, some of which may return in the form of a formal proposal at a later stage. One worth noting was a paper from the International Tank Container Organisation (ITCO), alerting the meeting to work by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) that may result in a ban on the use of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in articles. There are some 4,700 PFAS substances that could be in scope of such a restriction, including polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), which has a wide range of uses, including in seals and gaskets used on transport tanks. The material is used due to its superior properties in providing a tight seal and chemical resistance, performs better than the asbestos seals it replaced and no equivalent alternative exists, ITCO said. The Working Party strongly advised concerned parties to respond to ECHA’s consultation, which is due to close in June or July this year, and also encouraged schemes for the environmentally sound recycling of used materials containing PTFE.

Standards, resulting in a number of changes in Part 6, although some remain to be confirmed pending publication by CEN. If they were not available by the end of May, they would have to be held over to the 2025 editions of RID and ADR. A new edition of EN 12245:[2022] is due out, applying to fully wrapped composite cylinders and referenced in the table in 6.2.4.1.

Assuming this is published in time, applicability of EN 12245:2009 + A1.2011 will end on 31 December 2024.

Similarly, EN 14427:[2022] is due for publication. It is also referenced in the table in 6.2.4.1, referring to the design and construction of transportable refillable composite cylinders for LPG. If it is published in time, applicability of EN 14427:2014 will expire at the end of 2024.

EN ISO 17871:2020 on the specification and type testing of quick-release cylinder valves is already available so it is confirmed as appearing in the 2023 editions of RID and ADR; applicability of EN ISO 17871:2015 + A1.2018 will expire at the end of 2024.

EN ISO 14246:[2022] had not been published at the time of the Joint Meeting but again, assuming it does, it will overtake EN ISO 14246:2014 + A1.2017, which will expire at the end of 2024. This applies to manufacturing tests and examinations of cylinder valves.

There is a new row at the end of the table in 6.2.4.1 for EN ISO 23826:2021 – Gas cylinders – Ball valves – Specification and testing, which will apply mandatorily from 1 January 2025.

This is also added to the tables in 6.8.2.6.1 and 6.8.3.6.

In the table in 6.2.4.2, the current entry for EN 1251-3:2000 will now expire at the end of 2024. A new row is added directly after for EN ISO 21029-2:2015, Cryogenic vessels – Transportable vacuum insulate vessels of not more than 1 000 litres volume – Part 2: Operational requirements, which will apply

SETTING STANDARDS The Joint Meeting welcomed the regular report from the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN) on its ongoing work to publish new and revised standards relevant to the transport of dangerous goods. Those had been examined by the Working Group on

mandatorily from 1 January 2025. This entry also specifies that, clause 14 of the standard notwithstanding, pressure relief valves shall be periodically inspected and tested at intervals not exceeding five years.

There has been an update (A1:2021) to EN ISO 18119:2018, which will be added after the

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and a report will be prepared, probably in time for the autumn 2022 Joint Meeting.

The UK reported that Chris Jubb (CEN) has decided to retire fully and will not longer be able to chair the Working Group on Standards, having been attending the Joint Meeting for 25 years. Andy Webb of the European Cylinder Makers Association (ECMA) was elected as his replacement.

existing entry with a changeover from 1 January 2025. This relates to the periodic inspection and testing of seamless steel and seamless aluminium allow gas cylinders and tubes.

EN ISO 22434:[2022] Gas cylinders – Inspection and maintenance of valves, and EN 14912:[2022] LPG equipment and accessories – Inspection and maintenance of LPG cylinder valves at time of periodic inspection of cylinders, were both awaiting publication at the time of the Joint Meeting.

Should they appear in time they will both

once more, should it appear in time it will replace the existing entry, with immediate applicability. This applies to the design and construction of metallic pressure tanks for the transport of dangerous goods.

In the same table, there is a pending update to EN 13094:2015, which will no longer apply after the end of 2024. An additional row is entered in the table for EN 13094:2020 + A1:[2022]. This standard relates to the design and construction of metallic gravity-discharge tanks.

Another revision awaiting publication at the time is EN 12252:[2022] on the equipping of LPG road tankers; the current 2014 edition will no longer be applicable after the end of 2024, should the new edition appear in time.

At the previous Joint Meeting in September

INTERPRETATION OF RID/ADR/ADN The UN ECE has since 2016 published a list of ADR interpretations on its website and also offers interpretations of ADN; in both cases those interpretations are adopted and confirmed by the relevant regulatory bodies. The Netherlands, finding these useful, suggested to the RID Committee of Experts’ standing working group that OTIF should do the same for RID. However, that working group noted that most such interpretations are common between RID and ADR and suggested bringing the matter to the Joint Meeting.

In its informal document, the Netherlands made some relevant points about the availability of such interpretations, saying: “Although we are of the opinion that the provisions in RID/ADR/ADN should be written in such a way that its meaning and goal is clear for everyone and interpretations, in principle, should no longer be needed.

Unfortunately, this is not always the case or possible. Therefore, knowledge on previous discussions and the rationale behind the decision for a provision is sometimes necessary in order to implement that provision correctly.”

Furthermore, the paper observed, a lot of the knowledge about the discussions and rationale behind decisions made on the provisions in RID, ADR and ADN rests in the collective minds of the members of the regulatory bodies and, unless this is written

replace the earlier editions (EN ISO 22434:2011 and EN 14912:2005, respectively) as from the end of 2024.

Moving to Chapter 6.8, in the table in 6.8.2.6.1, EN 14025:2018 + AC:2020 is being updated, with a new edition due out this year;

2021, France had expressed problems in applying EN ISO 11118:2015 Gas cylinders – Non-refillable metallic gas cylinders – Specification and test methods, which is referenced in 6.2.4. CEN reported that a task force has been convened to consider the issue

down, valuable expertise can be lost when members no longer participate.

The Joint Meeting was not keen on the idea.

Firstly, regulatory interpretations are normally developed by the respective committee in charge of RID, ADR and ADN – although it

 THERE ARE THE USUAL NUMBER OF REVISIONS AND ADDITIONS TO THE STANDARDS APPLICABLE TO GAS CYLINDERS

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

REGULATIONS 49

Who do you contact for the latest DG compliant marked with the LQ mark and the ‘Overpack’ labels?

acknowledged that it would not be desirable if, say, RID and ADR had a different interpretation of the same provision. It also felt that, to avoid stakeholders having to search for guidance in different places, it would be cautious about publishing all its interpretations. The Netherlands representative said the comments would be reviewed and, if necessary, a further document may be presented at a future session.

The secretariat asked the Joint Meeting for its opinions on two special provisions: SP 532 (assigned only to UN 2073 ammonia solution, Division 2.2) and SP 543 (assigned only to UN 2672 ammonia solution, Class 8).

These do not appear in the UN Model Regulations and do not impose any additional requirements, merely clarifying the classification of similar substances. However, they are not consistent and, the secretariat felt, could lead to misinterpretation. It was keen to hear if the Joint Meeting felt they could safely be done away with or if they warranted some amendment.

The Joint Meeting largely concurred: the assignment of the two special provisions is correct, although they could both benefit from some clarification. It was also noted that these special provisions were developed during the restructuring of the regulations in 2001, when a large number of marginals containing referenced to the assignment of other UN numbers were transferred into special provisions – it is likely that others would need to be reviewed. The Joint Meeting agreed to move forward in a step-by-step approach and asked the secretariat to bring an official document listing the best options for resolving the issue at the next session.

The Council on Safe Transportation of Hazardous Articles (COSTHA) came with two informal documents raising issues about deliveries direct to consumers. It noted that there are exemptions within ADR that limit the provisions that apply in such cases but there

mark. Parcel delivery and postal services commonly use a bag as a handling device during delivery operations – do such bags constitute overpacks within the meaning of ADR? If so, how to they differ from other handling devices or storage locations within a delivery vehicle? And is there any added safety benefit in requiring the bags to be marked in accordance with 3.4.11?

The Joint Meeting felt that, in the absence of detailed data and more examples of such deliveries, it was not in a position to advise.

COSTHA invited delegates to get in touch with any comments and may return with a more detailed document at the next session.

COSTHA’s second paper referred to the rapid increase in online grocery delivery services during the current pandemic. While consumers buying goods such as aerosols, hair dyes, corrosive cleaning products and other items in scope of the regulations are exempted from compliance, does that still obtain when the goods are delivered by a commercial company? COSTHA posed some specific questions: must goods in such operations be packed in “suitable outer packaging”? Is a shopping bag considered an outer packaging or an overpack and, if the former, is it considered “suitable”? Would Free DG Label ID poster with every order there be any benefit in making these operations subject to the regulations?

COSTHA also offered some text that might clarify the matter.

Some delegates felt those proposed texts were too broad and also might lead to misinterpretation, though there was clearly an acceptance of the need for some action. More time was needed to study the issues, though.

COSTHA again invited delegates to send comments and also said it was proposing to put a paper to the UN Sub-committee of Experts on the subject.

are some minimum requirements such as “suitable outer packagings” that might benefit from being clarified. For instance, COSTHA said, when limited quantity materials are packaged and consigned within an overpack, the regulations require that the overpack be

PENDING ISSUES TheTel: International Association of Dangerous +44 (0)870 850 50 51 Email: sales@labeline.com Goods Safety Advisers (IASA) returned to a topic it www.labeline.com had raised at the previous session without success, namely its appeal to broaden the scope of special provision 668, which was

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That will now appear in a new section: 6.8.3.2.9.6 Safety valve mark 6.8.3.2.9.6.1 Tanks fitted with safety valves in accordance with 6.8.3.2.9.1 to 6.8.3.2.9.5 shall display the mark as set out in 6.8.3.2.9.6.3 to 6.8.3.2.9.6.6.

6.8.3.2.9.6.2 Tanks not fitted with safety valves in accordance with 6.8.3.2.9.1 to 6.8.3.2.9.5 shall not display the mark as set out in 6.8.3.2.9.6.3 to 6.8.3.2.9.6.6.

6.8.3.2.9.6.3 The mark shall consist of a white square with minimum dimensions of 250 mm × 250 mm. The line inside the edge shall be black, parallel and approximately 12.5 mm from the outside of that line to the outside edge of the mark. The letters “SV” shall be black, a minimum of 120 mm high and have a minimum stroke thickness of 12 mm.

introduced in RID/ADR in 2017 to provide relief from the regulations for substances carried at elevated temperatures for the purpose of road marking. IASA could see no reason why the same relief should not be provided for elevated temperature substances used for road repairs or other construction work.

Most delegates felt that the scope of the document was too broad; following an exchange of views, IASA offered to develop its proposal and return with a revised paper at the September 2022 session.

EIGA fared no better with its proposal to amend the note relating to EN ISO 18119:2018 in 6.2.3.5.1 and 6.2.4.2 of RID/ADR, many delegates being unmoved by the justification offered for allowing cylinders with a wall thickness less than the current minimum to be subjected to periodic inspection. EIGA

systems containing lithium ion batteries. The Joint Meeting noted some general comments and concerns, though France presented an informal document detailing a recent study on how to define an exemption threshold for batteries based on their energy content. This seemed to point a way forward and the Joint Meeting agreed to set up an informal working group on different exemptions related to the carriage of batteries.

Perhaps the most far-reaching decision made by the Joint Meeting was the adoption of a new marking for tanks carrying flammable liquefied gases that are fitted with safety valves. The amendment results from discussions by the BLEVE working group to prevent boiling liquid expanding vapour explosion (BLEVE) events occurring in the event of a fire during the transport of

Paragraph 6.8.3.2.9.6.4, covering the marking of tanks with a capacity of less than 3,000 litres, differs between RID and ADR; RID thus far applies only to tank containers, while ADR covers both demountable tanks and tank containers.

Subsequent paragraphs give the standard provisions regarding weather-resistance and ability to withstand 15 minutes’ engulfment in

offered to speak with those who raised concerns and may prepare an updated proposal for the next session.

Sweden proposed the insertion of new provisions to clarify the conditions for the carriage by road and rail of electric energy

flammable gases and liquids. There is now a mandatory requirement for tanks transporting flammable liquefied gases to be fitted with safety valves and, to aid the emergency services, it has been deemed desirable to add provisions for such tanks to be clearly marked.

fire. The mark will have to be displayed on both sides and both ends of tank containers, though for those of less than 3,000 litres capacity it will only need to be on two sides or ends. The same applies to demountable tanks under ADR. Also in ADR, fixed tanks (tank

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

REGULATIONS 51

Who do you contact for Who do you contact for the latest DG compliant DG Regulations? vehicles) will be required to display the mark While there was some support for the labels? on both sides and at the rear. RID has not principle of the proposal, many felt that further confirmed the position for tank wagons: a consideration was needed on the possible requirement for the mark to be displayed on side-effects of any change. There was also both sides is currently left in square brackets some preference for a new special provision IATA’s Leading Distributor pending a decision by the RID Committee of rather than an amendment. Germany Free Worldwide Shipping on the Edition proposal for Experts’ standing working group. volunteered to work on63rd an updated The new provisions have necessitated the consideration at the next session. It was also available in agreement of transitional provision in 1.6.3.60 agreed that the UNADR Sub-committee of Experts spiral format and, for tank containers, 1.6.4.64 to allow should be advised of any amendments once existing tanks to go without the mark until agreement has been reached. their next intermediate or periodic inspection Norway and Sweden*brought up an issue ** W NE taken to WP15, where it after 31 December 2023 (this version for RID that they had already *** remains to be confirmed). was suggested that, as it applies to RID as well, it should be discussed by the Joint IATA availableand in NEW PROPOSALS Meeting. This involves 1.10.4 1.1.3.6. The spiral format Germany proposed an amendment to special first sentence in section 1.10.4 exempts provision 376, which deals with damaged and dangerous goods carried in accordance with defective lithium batteries. SP 376 had been 1.1.3.6 from the provisions in Chapter 1.10. brought into RID/ADR/ADN directly from the However, when 1.1.3.6 is applied section UN Model Regulations but it lacks any clarity 1.10.4 is not applicable. This makes the over the assignment of transport categories, sentence redundant. Further, the second which is needed to apply the provisions of sentence of 1.10.4 deals with carriage in bulk 1.1.3.6 in RID and ADR. and tanks in volumes not exceeding those in

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Tel: +44 (0)870 850 50 51 Email: sales@labeline.com

www.labeline.com

www.labeline.com

www.labeline.com

WWW.HCBLIVE.COM

52

1.1.3.6, which seems inconsistent.

The paper received several comments with differing views. Norway and Sweden agreed to take those into account in the development of a revised proposal for consideration at the September 2022 session.

Sweden came with a proposal based on information received from the waste industry, concerning problems relating to the handling and transport of waste paint products.

Historically, most paint products have been classified under UN 1263 due to their flammable ingredients but, as industry has moved away from solvent-based paints to water-based formulations, a large proportion of paints are now transported under UN 3082.

Special provision 650 was added to RID/ADR in 2005 specifically to clarify the transport of wastes of UN 1263 and Sweden believed it would be sensible to extend its provisions to cover those of UN 3082.

The Joint Meeting welcomed Sweden’s initiative and agreed the changes, following

multilateral agreement is planned to allow their use before then.

The Netherlands had spotted a need for a transitional provision following the inclusion in the 2021 texts of RID and ADR of new requirements for the marking of the inner receptacles of composite intermediate bulk containers (IBCs) as there are many such units in use manufactured prior to the change that comply with the regulations in all other ways. The Joint Meeting agreed and added the proposed measure at 1.6.1.52: Inner receptacles of composite IBCs manufactured before 1 July 2021 in accordance with the requirements of 6.5.2.2.4 in force up to 31 December 2020 and which are not in accordance with the requirements of 6.5.2.2.4 regarding the marks on the inner receptacles that are not readily accessible for inspection due to the design of the outer casing applicable as from 1 January 2021 may continue be used until the end of their period of use determined in 4.1.1.15.

The informal working group on e-learning held two lunchtime meetings during the session and will continue its work intersessionally. More information will be provided to the Joint Meeting at its next session.

ERA provided an update on the development of the Risk Management Platform aimed at facilitating the implementation of the risk management framework for the transport of dangerous goods that will be referenced in Chapter 1.9 of the 2023 editions of RID, ADR and ADN. The platform will be made publicly available through the European Commission.

The UK raised a question about the transport of electric vehicles on car transporters, after a transport company had asked whether such consignments needed marking. The UK felt they did not but sought other opinions. In the event, the Joint Meeting agreed with the UK and no action was taken.

The next session of the Joint Meeting is

some amendment. That involves some additional wording in SP 650 to include reference to wastes involving paint under UN 3082 along with the insertion of ‘650’ against UN 3082 in the Dangerous Goods List. These amendments will enter into force with the 2025 edition of the regulations, though a

OTHER BUSINESS The Joint Meeting received an update on progress by the informal working group on the transport of hazardous waste, which hopes to bring its mandate to a close at its next meeting.

scheduled to take place in Geneva from 12 to 16 September 2022. It was also noted that the next meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Harmonisation of RID/ADR/ADN with the UN Recommendations on the transport of Dangerous Goods is due to take place in Geneva from 26 to 28 April 2023.

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

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54

CHANGE DOWN UNDER AUSTRALIA • THE ADG CODE REFLECTS BUT DOES NOT COPY THE UN MODEL REGULATIONS AND THE PROVISIONS OF ADR AND RID. THAT MAY BE ABOUT TO CHANGE, AS COSTHA DELEGATES HEARD

ON THE FACE of things, Australia has a very streamlined way of regulating the transport of dangerous goods: the Australian Dangerous Goods (ADG) Code is updated periodically, in line with the changes adopted by the UN Experts in the Model Regulations – even if it is often out of line with the biennial revisions.

International air and sea transport fall under the international codes, as is the

regularly out of alignment, as it takes longer for some states/territories to implement the rules than do others. Furthermore, there are certain areas – explosives in particular – that are out of scope of the ADG Code. In essence, the ADG Code is a model regulation and it is up to each state or territory to update their own legislation appropriately.

Speaking at the Council on Safe

general practice.

However, the domestic regulations are complicated by the federal nature of the country: while the National Transport Commission (NTC) is responsible for updating the ADG Code, it is put into effect by each of the various states and territories; these are

Transportation of Hazardous Articles’ (COSTHA) Annual Forum in early April, Debra Kirk, manager of legislative maintenance at NTC, reported that regulatory misalignment has perhaps been the least of the country’s problems over the past two years. As an island country – a large island, but still an island

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

– Australia is highly reliant on imports but, with supply chain disruptions caused by the Covid pandemic, alongside accidents such as the grounding of the containership Ever Given in the Suez Canal last year, it has faced “significant roadblocks”, she said. Many goods have been in short supply and, while the situation is easing, there are still some problems. For instance, Debra said, there is a critical shortage of urea, which means there is also a shortage of AdBlue.

Some problems have been self-inflicted.

Individual states and territories have, during the Covid pandemic, imposed their own restrictions. These have sometimes included border closures or the installation of border checkpoints, often at very short notice and affecting significant road connections, such as between South Australia and Victoria or between Queensland and New South Wales.

WHERE WE ARE NOW Debra explained how the ADG Code is structured: while it is based on the UN Model Regulations and the Manual of Tests and Criteria, those core requirements are

REGULATIONS 55

supplemented by some unique components.

This reflects to some extent the particular qualities of road and rail transport in Australia, with large volumes of goods having to be moved over very long distances, often involving the use of ‘road trains’ with up to six or seven trailers behind a very big tractor unit.

That means that the modal elements of the Code have to reflect operations on the ground, so the provisions for vehicle construction are necessarily different to those in, say, ADR. However, the ADG Code also has its own requirements for vehicle placarding, loading, stowage and segregations, as well as, less surprisingly, the provision of emergency information and local licensing. It is important to remember, Debra added, that the ADG Code does not always follow ADR/RID, and especially does not include the 500 and 600

 THE ADG CODE NEEDS TO TAKE ACCOUNT OF THE VERY SPECIFIC NATURE OF ROAD AND RAIL TRANSPORT IN AUSTRALIA, OFTEN OVER VERY LONG DISTANCES WITH VERY LARGE VEHICLES

series of special provisions. . While it is unlikely that there is much international transport involving road tankers to Australia, those moving dangerous goods by intermodal containers and tank containers should be alert to the differences.

One other element not covered by the ADG Code is the land transport of explosives (other than those of division 1.4S). Each state/ territory has its own licensing and permitting systems – and these can vary considerably, Debra added. Again, this reflects local operations, with often very large quantities of explosives or precursors carried by road or rail over long distances for delivery to mining operations, especially in Western Australia.

The ADG Code is updated every two years, in line with the UN Model Regulations, with a one-year transitional period, although it is not always implemented accordingly because of the need for its to be reflected in state/ territory legislation. The current verion, ADG 7.7, took effect on 1 October 2020 and has been mandatory from 1 October 2021.

In addition to the Code itself, and rather in the manner of the special permit and approvals process in the US, industry can

petition for national approvals, exemptions, determinations and classifications that may be at variance with the Code itself. Applicants should in the first instance contact the competent authority in the relevant jurisdiction but for nation-wide consideration submissions go to the Competent Authorities Panel (CAP). More than 220 such applications were considered by CAP during 2021.

PLAN OF ACTION NTC now has plans in place to attempt to rationalise the Code itself and to improve national implementation. In November 2020 it recommended an in-depth review of those sections of the Code that are specific to Australia, which would include bringing in requirements for all Class 1 goods and, perhaps, some relevant concepts from ADR and RID. It will also include a review of the training requirements, with more detail on the training required for employees in different positions.

A review period began in February 2022 and is due to run to November 2023; following that, a revised ADG Code will be drafted, with the aim of having the recommendations ready for adoption by November 2024.

This is, Debra admitted, quite a task that NTC has set itself. “It won’t be smooth sailing,” she said, “NTC knows which way it wants it to go but the outcome is far from clear.”

Those interested in keeping up with proceedings should keep an eye on the NTC website, and in particular the page on the ADG Code: www.ntc.gov.au/codes-and-guidelines/ australian-dangerous-goods-code. This provides a link to a pdf copy of the Code itself, a summary of the differences between ADG 7.6 and 7.7, and more information on the various laws in place in each of the states and territories.

In addition, NTC’s website has some guidance on the transport of dangerous goods in limited quantities, downloadable class labels and other marks, and a link to a pdf copy of the Australian and New Zealand Emergency Response Guide 2021 (ANZ-ERG), which may be used as an alternative to the Initial Emergency Response Guide and is approved as satisfying the requirements of the ADG Code.

WWW.HCBLIVE.COM

56 BACK PAGE

NOT OTHERWISE SPECIFIED BLOW OUT The modern world relies on electricity – and is likely to become more reliant in a post-oil world. But it is not without its hazards, as a group of festival-goers were reminded in rather dramatic fashion in April. They were attending a Hindu temple in Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu, India, where a chariot festival was taking place. They were mounted on a truck decorated as a temple chariot, when it touched an overhead power line. A spark set fire to the decorations, engulfing the celebrants, 11 of whom died from electrocution. Three more people were hospitalised with burns.

Elsewhere, power issues cause annoyances rather than fatalities. For instance, hundreds of people lost their electricity supply in Rotorua, New Zealand last month. The power company, Unison, identified the problem fairly quickly: a helium balloon had hit power lines, triggering safety mechanisms that caused the lines to trip. Locals reported hearing a large bang at the time – which is odd, considering helium is inert.

Hotel also sent plumes of black smoke into the air.

Surveyors had been working in the area that morning – though they are not being fingered as the culprits. One of the crew said he saw one of the manhole covers, weighing around 100 kg, fly up into the air, come crashing down and break in two “If anyone was near that thing or happened to be standing on top of it, they would be seriously injured,” he said. “If a car was on top of that thing, I can only imagine what would have happened to it.”

Local power companies sent crews to the scene to assess the damage and investigate what actually happened. We know it has happened before, usually due to a gas leak, but this incident is still under investigation.

FIRE IN THE HOLE Part of a busy street in Boston, Massachusetts was closed one day last month as firefighters responded to reports of explosions. A video captured on a smartphone showed flames shooting out of the ground and there were plenty of witnesses to tell their tale.

CHASE THAT Modern-day piracy has little of the glamour associated with the golden age of Hollywood: today’s pirates are no Errol Flynn or Douglas Fairbanks Jr, nor even Johnny Depp; rather, they tend to be a ragged bunch of desperate men, seeking riches on the high seas. And the international shipping community has learned to become aware of the threat – which makes one wonder what the trimaran Lakota was doing off the coast of Yemen last month.

Sure enough, three skiffs with pirates wielding AK-47s attacked the yacht, one of them even managing to get aboard, if only temporarily. What perhaps the pirates had not

“We felt the boom right underneath out feet,” said one bystander. “The manhole cover was 10 to 15 feet (call it 4 metres) in the air and there were flames shooting out from underground. We were lucky we were nowhere close to it but it was definitely alarming.” At least two manhole fires near the Mandarin

noticed was that the 60-foot yacht they had in their sights had formerly held a number of world records (under the command of Steve Fossett) and was easily able to outrun their own outboard motors.

Happily, an EU naval force managed to catch up with the yacht and confirmed the crew were safe.

HCB MONTHLY | JUNE 2022

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COURSES & CONFERENCES

57

CONFERENCE DIARY The ongoing global Covid-19 pandemic continues to cause the cancellation or postponement of many events planned for the next few months and many organisers are taking their events online.

HCB is doing its best to keep on top of developments but readers should check the dates and locations shown below as things change rapidly

JUNE

Interspill

technology and equipment

JUNE 21-23, AMSTERDAM

www.expologisti-k.com.ar/en/

JUNE 7-8, DAVENTRY

Third triennial conference on spill prevention, preparedness, response and restoration.

AUGUST

35th annual regulatory update conference

www.interspillevent.com

VCA Dangerous Goods Seminar

www.vehicle-certification-agency.gov.uk/ dangerous-goods/dangerous-goods-conference/ IAFC Hazmat Conference

ChemEdge European Liquid Gas Congress

AUGUST 16-19, INDIANAPOLIS

JUNE 29-30, BARCELONA

Conference for the North American chemical distribution sector

Annual international event for response teams

Europe’s biggest LPG conference and exhibition to discuss the latest opportunities and challenges facing the sector

www.iafc.org/events/hazmat-conf

www.europeanliquidgascongress2022.com

ILTA

CO2 Shipping & Terminals

AUGUST 22-26, FRANKFURT

JUNE 13-15, HOUSTON

JUNE 30, LONDON

41st annual operating conference and trade show of the International Liquid Terminals Association

Inaugural one-day event to discuss the emerging CO2 supply chain

Exhibition and conference for the specialty chemicals sector

https://ilta2022.ilta.org/

terminals-conference

Megatrans

Multimodal 2022

Transport Logistic China

Biennial trade show for the freight sector in Australia and internationally

JUNE 9-12, BALTIMORE

www.nacd.com/education-meetings/meetings/2022chemedge/ Achema

www.achema.de

www.rivieramm.com/events/co2-shippingAUGUST 24-26, MELBOURNE

JUNE 14-16, BIRMINGHAM

JUNE 30-JULY 2, XIAMEN

14th annual exhibition for the supply chain management and logistics sectors

Ninth international exhibition for logistics, telematics and transport

www.megatrans.com.au/

www.multimodal.org.uk/exhibition

www.transportlogistic-china.com

PPC Fall Meeting AUGUST 28-30, NASHVILLE

JULY

Bi-annual meeting and tradeshow of the Petroleum Packaging Council

Annual conference and AGM of the Federation of European Tank Storage Associations

World LNG Series: Asia Pacific Summit

www.ppcouncil.org/upcoming-meetings.php

https://fetsa.eu/annual-conference/

12th annual meeting for LNG buyers and sellers

SEPTEMBER

PGLC

www.worldlngasia.com

Gastech 2022

Second annual Petrochemical Global Logistics Convention

Intermodal Asia

International conference and trade show for the LNG and LPG industries

https://www.pglc.biz/

Annual exhibition for the Asian intermodal sector

www.gastechevent.com

ChemCon Europe

www.intermodal-asia.com

Labelmaster DG Symposium

Platform for discussion on international chemical legislation

Expo Logisti-K AUGUST 9-11, BUENOS AIRES

17th annual Dangerous Goods Symposium hosted by Labelmaster’s DG Exchange

https://chemcon.net/

14th international exhibition for logistics

www.dgexchange.com/

FETSA Annual Conference JUNE 15-16, BRUSSELS

JULY 6-8, SINGAPORE

JUNE 16-17, BARCELONA

SEPTEMBER 5-8, MILANO JULY 12-14, SHANGHAI

JUNE 20-24, LONDON

SEPTEMBER 7-9, CHICAGO

WWW.HCBLIVE.COM

COURSES & CONFERENCES

57

CONFERENCE DIARY The ongoing global Covid-19 pandemic continues to cause the cancellation or postponement of many events planned for the next few months and many organisers are taking their events online.

HCB is doing its best to keep on top of developments but readers should check the dates and locations shown below as things change rapidly

JUNE

Interspill

technology and equipment

JUNE 21-23, AMSTERDAM

www.expologisti-k.com.ar/en/

JUNE 7-8, DAVENTRY

Third triennial conference on spill prevention, preparedness, response and restoration.

AUGUST

35th annual regulatory update conference

www.interspillevent.com

VCA Dangerous Goods Seminar

www.vehicle-certification-agency.gov.uk/ dangerous-goods/dangerous-goods-conference/ IAFC Hazmat Conference

ChemEdge European Liquid Gas Congress

AUGUST 16-19, INDIANAPOLIS

JUNE 29-30, BARCELONA

Conference for the North American chemical distribution sector

Annual international event for response teams

Europe’s biggest LPG conference and exhibition to discuss the latest opportunities and challenges facing the sector

www.iafc.org/events/hazmat-conf

www.europeanliquidgascongress2022.com

ILTA

CO2 Shipping & Terminals

AUGUST 22-26, FRANKFURT

JUNE 13-15, HOUSTON

JUNE 30, LONDON

41st annual operating conference and trade show of the International Liquid Terminals Association

Inaugural one-day event to discuss the emerging CO2 supply chain

Exhibition and conference for the specialty chemicals sector

https://ilta2022.ilta.org/

terminals-conference

Megatrans

Multimodal 2022

Transport Logistic China

Biennial trade show for the freight sector in Australia and internationally

JUNE 9-12, BALTIMORE

www.nacd.com/education-meetings/meetings/2022chemedge/ Achema

www.achema.de

www.rivieramm.com/events/co2-shippingAUGUST 24-26, MELBOURNE

JUNE 14-16, BIRMINGHAM

JUNE 30-JULY 2, XIAMEN

14th annual exhibition for the supply chain management and logistics sectors

Ninth international exhibition for logistics, telematics and transport

www.megatrans.com.au/

www.multimodal.org.uk/exhibition

www.transportlogistic-china.com

PPC Fall Meeting AUGUST 28-30, NASHVILLE

JULY

Bi-annual meeting and tradeshow of the Petroleum Packaging Council

Annual conference and AGM of the Federation of European Tank Storage Associations

World LNG Series: Asia Pacific Summit

www.ppcouncil.org/upcoming-meetings.php

https://fetsa.eu/annual-conference/

12th annual meeting for LNG buyers and sellers

SEPTEMBER

PGLC

www.worldlngasia.com

Gastech 2022

Second annual Petrochemical Global Logistics Convention

Intermodal Asia

International conference and trade show for the LNG and LPG industries

https://www.pglc.biz/

Annual exhibition for the Asian intermodal sector

www.gastechevent.com

ChemCon Europe

www.intermodal-asia.com

Labelmaster DG Symposium

Platform for discussion on international chemical legislation

Expo Logisti-K AUGUST 9-11, BUENOS AIRES

17th annual Dangerous Goods Symposium hosted by Labelmaster’s DG Exchange

https://chemcon.net/

14th international exhibition for logistics

www.dgexchange.com/

FETSA Annual Conference JUNE 15-16, BRUSSELS

JULY 6-8, SINGAPORE

JUNE 16-17, BARCELONA

SEPTEMBER 5-8, MILANO JULY 12-14, SHANGHAI

JUNE 20-24, LONDON

SEPTEMBER 7-9, CHICAGO

WWW.HCBLIVE.COM

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