Austria-based logistics specialist Felbermayr has successfully completed one of its largest multimodal heavy-lift projects to date, delivering over 34,000 freight tonnes of components to the Mintia power plant in Romania.
The year-long project, concluded in late summer 2025, involved the transport of approximately 1,600 cargo units, including multiple 380-tonne generators, 313-tonne transformers, and gas and steam turbines. The components were delivered from across Europe, the United States, and China to a site located more than 250 kilometers inland from the nearest navigable waterway.
Peter Niedermair-Auer, Project Manager at Felbermayr, described the logistics as “technically and logistically a major challenge,” requiring a combination of inland waterways, breakbulk port operations, RoRo capabilities, and extensive road transport. “This project demanded the full scope of expertise across the Felbermayr Group,” he added.
Inland Waterways and Complex Transfers
Initial deliveries began in May 2024, following just under a year of planning. Two gas turbines arrived from Berlin by inland vessel, were transshipped in Linz, and moved onward via Budapest. At Csepel Port, the turbines—each split into 12 packages—were transferred onto heavy-duty trailers for road transport to Mintia. The heaviest segment tipped the scales at 150 tonnes and measured 13.7 meters in length.
In April 2025, the steam turbine was shipped from Mülheim, Germany, via Linz and Szeged before reaching Romania. Seven heavy transports were needed to deliver the dismantled turbine, with the largest part also weighing 150 tonnes and stretching nearly 10 meters.
A key logistical hurdle involved road conditions across Romania and Hungary, where aging infrastructure and tight village passages required detailed static calculations and route assessments. “We had to conduct multiple structural checks and route verifications,” said Niedermair-Auer, crediting local partners Eszter Balog in Hungary and Marius Tudose in Romania for critical support.
Record-Breaking Road Moves in Hungary
Among the most challenging transports were three 380-tonne generators shipped from Charleston, USA. After arriving in February and May at PSA Breakbulk Terminal in Antwerp, they were barged to Linz and moved onto RoRo barges. From there, a self-propelled modular transporter (SPMT) carried them through Hungary and into Romania.
One road leg alone covered 270 kilometers, requiring a 100-meter-long convoy with two 20-axle-line trailers and a side girder bridge. The total transport height reached 5.4 meters, with a gross weight of 770 tonnes. Hungarian authorities coordinated multiple route inspections and infrastructure modifications, including tree trimming and temporary bridge reinforcement, marking the move as one of the largest road transport in Hungary’s history.
Multinational Origin of Key Components
Three 313-tonne transformers were shipped from China to Konstanza, Romania, and then moved via inland waterways through the Danube and Tisza rivers. Upon arrival in Hungary, they followed the same RoRo unloading procedure as the generators, using SPMTs and Goldhofer’s new 24-axle trailers—half of which featured enhanced bending resistance.
Transport dimensions for these loads reached 60 meters in length, 5 meters in width, and 5.5 meters in height, with a combined transport weight of 466 tonnes.
Precision at the Foundation Level
On arrival at the Mintia site, five of six core units—generators and transformers—were positioned directly onto their foundations using Felbermayr’s engineered lifting systems. A 500-tonne gantry system was used to load the gas turbine generators onto 10-axle 4-file SPMTs, which then traveled along a specially prepared 36-meter rail path to final placement.
The steam turbine generator, however, was offloaded and stored temporarily due to incomplete foundation work.
Transformers were delivered with 24-axle trailers and moved underneath a 400-tonne skidding system. A three-meter trench between the offloading point and the foundation required bridging using supports and beams. One transformer, brought on a side girder bridge, required partial disassembly of the trailer to slide it into final position using step jacks and a skidding track.
Peter Stöttinger, Managing Director at Felbermayr Transport- und Hebetechnik, highlighted the firm’s integrated approach: “Our multimodal capabilities—on road, water, and rail—combined with our European network, enabled us to execute this complex project with precision.”
The Mintia facility is currently undergoing transformation from coal to a combined gas and steam plant. Upon completion in 2026, it will boast an installed capacity of 1,700 megawatts, making it the largest facility of its kind in the European Union.
