Land and sea transport operation

Specialist logistics and infrastructure company Lift & Shift India transported two oil refinery columns across land and sea.

A 990 tonne vacuum column measuring 63.3 x 13.1 x 14.3 metres and a 728 tonne crude column measuring 76 x 9.3 x 9.93 m were commissioned by Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL), India, as part of the company’s modernisation plan.

They were collected from manufacturer Larsen & Toubro, based in Hazira, India, and transported to HPCL’s oil and natural gas refinery in Visakh, India.

The columns were loaded onto hydraulic trailers using 64 self-propelled modular transporter axles at the company’s yard in Hazira, India and transported on 2.5 kilometres of roads, before reaching Larsen & Troubro’s jetty.

They were then rolled onto Lift & Shift’s AF 281 barge and towed by tugs across the Arabian Sea and through the Bay of Bengal to an anchorage at Visakh, India.

The oceanic journey took 30 days and weather conditions were monitored daily. The barge and tugs completed the route without stopping to refuel and arrived at the anchorage in the Bay of Bengal on schedule.

It took two days to roll the columns off the AF 281 barge at the Visakh anchorage. They were then transported a further 4.5 km of road to the HPCL site in Visakh, India.

HPCL and Larsen & Toubro had included logistics company Lift & Shift India in the design stage of the columns to ensure the success of the transportation operation. Both columns were delivered to HPCL’s yard safely after the 30 day sea crossing.