IULIUS to invest EUR 29 mln in the largest private bioremediation process in Europe

IULIUS Company, alongside a multidisciplinary team of environmental experts, kickstarted the largest bioremediation project in Europe by a private investor, focusing on a piece of land in the very heart of Constanța, that has been polluted and inactive for more than a decade, and restoring it back to the city. The investment in the remediation process adds up to more than EUR 29 million and marks the second phase (after the archeological research) of the 800-plus million Euro investment project for converting the former Oil Terminal platform into an integrated urban complex. The uniqueness of this process lies in the development of an innovative scientific method and formulation, specially created to resolve the issues of this site, in the size of the project site spanning 38 hectares of industrial brownfield, as well as in the fact that this process entails the remediation of both the soil and groundwater in the contaminated site area.

“This area has held a decades-long historical role in the development of Constanța and has been a driver of economic growth. We aim to transform this place, set in the heart of Constanța, from a symbol of yesteryear’s industry into a clean and modern urban regeneration project, integrated in the life of the community and bound to become a new development hub for the city in every respect. We are now taking the most important step by healing the contaminated area of the city and transforming it into a green project for generations to come, with impact in developing Constanța into a year-round active and attractive destination,” said Raluca Munteanu, Development Manager IULIUS.

The bioremediation process is conducted nearby the city center, in an area with a lengthy industrial past, accommodating an oil depot with more than 30 tanks, which contained petroleum products.

The process phases will entail the bioremediation of the soil, physical isolation of the contaminant, and purification of the groundwater, and the solutions identified by the multidisciplinary team of experts are customized and based on exploratory drilling and laboratory testing. At the same time, the contaminated area at the bottom of the excavation pit will be isolated using a physical barrier (a high-density geomembrane with proven durability over time) in order to stop the pollutant from migrating both horizontally and vertically.

The completion of this complex soil bioremediation and groundwater treatment process ensures that the area is safe and can be developed. An area with environmental issues that have been perpetuated and multiplied over the course of decades will become not only sustainable, but also a point of attraction for the entire community.

IULIUS Company proposes the development of the largest urban regeneration project in the country in Constanța. This entails an EUR 800-plus million investment that will transform the 38 hectares of the former Oil Terminal platform into an integrated urban complex.

The concept for this project was signed by the notorious architecture firm Foster + Partners and will help to develop Constanța into an active destination 365 days a year.