Sarens has been busy at a couple of projects in North Africa, performing heavy lifts at Arabian Cement’s factory in Ain El Sokhna, Egypt and the installation of heavy equipment at the Tinrhert gas fields at Alrar, Algeria.
In Egypt, Sarens was tasked with replacing an ageing air-cooled condenser (ACC) without interrupting operations at the plant. Due to limited space onsite, Sarens deployed its CC4800 crane in a SSL/LSL configuration with a 90-m boom. The crane was transported from the Sarens yard in Wolvertem, Belgium, taking a week to reach the Egyptian site.
Weighing roughly 165 tonnes apiece, each ACC unit had to be lifted at a radius of 50 m to a height of 32 m. The tight crane position made movement a challenge, but Sarens – alongside the client’s workforce – completed the turnkey project over 10 days.
Elsewhere, Sarens Algérie – commissioned by Petrofac on behalf of national energy company Sonatrach – mobilised its 600-tonne capacity CC-2800 crawler crane (configured with a 54-m main boom) and a AC-140 all-terrain crane overland from Oman, a 10-day 1,600 km journey. Assembly onsite took a further 10 days.
The key operation at the Tinrhert gas field was the lift of a 4 m-high, 88.9-tonne water tank roof. Due to limited space, the CC-2800 had to both slew and crawl with the load to precisely position component. To tackle the challenging environment, including weather and sandy conditions, Sarens prioritised hydration protocols and protective measures against dust and heat.
An ongoing project, Sarens has recently mobilised a second crawler crane – a CC2400-1 – to the site, which will support the upcoming installation of two columns, each weighing 411 tonnes.
Last week, HLPFI reported that Sarens had wrapped up its first full-scope project in Lithuania.
