Since our first ECT project in 1989, we delivered 96 earth covered tanks for the storage of 14 different petrochemical / chemical products with sizes from 500 to 4,000 m³.
Earth covered storage tanks can be built with an in-tank discharge system and are embedded in a sand bed covered with earth. The commonly used spherical tanks require significant amount of active fire protection and costly fire proofing to mitigate the risks of structural failure which may lead into the worst case scenario of an BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion). Due to the earth cover the risk of external fire due to the embedding is not present, no active firefighting network and no bund wall collection is needed. Even though the overall investment costs are slightly higher, ECT storage offers a much higher sustainability, comparable operation- and lower maintenance costs as compared to above ground spherical storage. An intrinsically safe concept and at the same time the lowest visual impact on the landscape are additional advantages. Until today ECTs offer the safest solution for the storage of pressurized petrochemicals / chemicals.
