Alkion Terminal Marseille in France has been granted approval to operate an isotank storage facility by La direction régionale de l’environnement, de l’aménagement et du logement (DREAL), the regional planning authority.

Alkion’s isotank facility will be the first such platform in southern Europe. The company says that its expertise in dangerous good storage was a major contributor to the granting of the operating permit. Isotanks can be transported by truck, train or vessel without having to be discharged, and Alkion says that add isotanks to their offerings give greater flexibility to their customers, for example as a platform for buffer stocks or spot need in instances such as vessel cancellations or plant maintenance. The isotank platform will also increase the safety of logistics and reduce CO₂ emissions.

The isotank facility will have 204 spaces for multiple product types, with 84 of those for flammable products, 60 for toxic products and 60 for corrosive products.

Alkion is already demolishing several old tanks to make space for the isotank facility and it expects to receive the first isotank in July 2023. The project’s partners include Aix Marseille Provence Metropolis, DREAL, UMF (Union Maritime et Fluviale) and Via Marseille-Fos.

‘Such a platform does not exist in the south of Europe and it’s a must have for all isotank users. It will lead to more safety regarding the storage of dangerous goods, but also to several supply chain optimisations and decreased CO₂ footprint due to multimodal solutions,’ says Aurélien Jakalski, sales engineer and project developer at Alkion Terminal Marseille.

(Source: TSM, July 26-2022)