Ensuring the responsible closure of Alkion Terminal Sotrasol
On 23 June 2021 the Stolt Spray became the last vessel to unload product at Alkion Terminal Sotrasol in Le Havre. This follows the decision, taken in 2015, to wind down and close the terminal site in cooperation with the landowner, the Le Havre Port Authority.
Activities to close the Sotrasol site ran concurrently with plans to migrate customers to our nearby Alkion Terminal Le Havre. These plans ran smoothly and the first customer migration was successfully completed in April 2021. We are now focused on ensuring that the Sotrasol site is remediated for future industrial use and handed over to the Port Authority in February 2023.
Sotrasol: A historic and strategic industrial site
The Sotrasol terminal site first became operational in 1946 and quickly became a vital link for French supply chains. For many years it served as a hub for the import of vegetable and animal oils for the food and cosmetics sectors. In the 1960s it evolved to become a key hub for mineral oil, and in the 1980s it became an important location for the distribution of additives and lubricants.
A few years ago the Le Havre Port Authority began to form ambitious project plans for the future of Le Havre. These plans necessitated the closure of the site, which is located in the old port near the center of the city.
One of these projects include jetty infrastructure designed for a new Siemens GAMESA factory, the largest industrial project in France dedicated to renewable energy. The factory will produce wind turbines destined for five offshore windfarms off the northern coast of France. In doing so it will make a major contribution to the energy transition in France.
Thorough and expert land remediation
Alkion listened to the needs of the Port Authority and France’s climate change ambitions by agreeing to decommission the Sotrasol terminal site. This process is ongoing and Alkion is making all necessary efforts to ensure that the terminal is demolished responsibly and the land remediated for future industrial use.
Customer consultations
The Sotrasol terminal closure risked the disruption of the operations and supply chains of Alkion customers. However, close collaboration with customers has enabled the smooth migration of customer operations to new, state-of-the-art storage capacity at Alkion Terminal Le Havre in the industrial heart of the port of Le Havre.
