Stade

LNG-Terminal

Foundations for Europe’s largest LNG tanks

Two LNG tanks are being built at the Stade site, which are among the largest tank structures of their kind in Europe. Before the future facilities become visible, their foundations are being laid deep in the subsoil.

For the foundations of the two LNG tanks, the Oldenburg branch of PORR Spezialtiefbau manufactured a total of 1,490 Frankipiles NG® with a diameter of 610 mm. The geological conditions and the loads to be borne by the future tank farms determined the requirements for the foundations. The piles were constructed to a length of around 24 metres and transfer the loads from the structures to the deeper, load-bearing soil layers. Before series production began, five test piles were manufactured and load tests were carried out. The results served as the basis for the further construction of the pile foundations.

Frankipile NG® for deep foundations

The Frankipile NG® was used for the foundations of the LNG tanks. The pile system is part of the Greenpile® product family from PORR Spezialtiefbau and was deployed to meet the requirements of the project at the Stade site. The piles were manufactured with lengths of around 24 m. A total of 1,490 foundation piles were driven into the ground, which transfer the loads from the future tank farms into the load-bearing soil layers. The pile fabrication was performed using the internal pipe ramming method. As the displacement method is used, no continuous soil excavation takes place during construction. This reduced the amount of additional material handling on site and facilitated site logistics. The work took place on a large construction site in the immediate vicinity of the River Elbe. The piles form the foundation for the subsequent building and plant construction works for the Hanseatic Energy Hub.

Work on the banks of the Elbe

The installation of the deep foundations took place in parallel with extensive delivery and construction processes on site. Reinforcement cages were delivered, prepared and integrated into the ongoing work on a daily basis. At the same time, pile fabrication as well as other preparatory measures for the subsequent construction phases were carried out. The site infrastructure and work processes were tailored to the requirements of the terminal site. As part of the site organisation, measures were implemented for water treatment, dust suppression and the monitoring of project-related noise and vibration levels. These included, amongst other things, the collection and treatment of flushing water, as well as the watering of work areas during dry weather conditions.

Foundation for the next construction phases

The completion of the deep foundations laid the groundwork for the subsequent work on the LNG tanks. Even before the future structures came to define the site’s landscape, the foundations for a central section of the Hanseatic Energy Hub were being laid beneath the surface. Situated between the River Elbe, the tank site and the construction site logistics, the pile foundation forms the basis for the subsequent construction phases and the further development of the terminal site.