Commissioning 1911 (≈ 1911)
Inauguration after two years of work.
1947-1950
Major modernization
Major modernization 1947-1950 (≈ 1949)
Replacement of steam pumps with electrical systems.
1989
Partial decommissioning
Partial decommissioning 1989 (≈ 1989)
Start of functional decline.
août 1993
Final judgment
Final judgment août 1993 (≈ 1993)
End of activity, replaced by underground station.
2019
Selected conversion project
Selected conversion project 2019 (≈ 2019)
Transformation into a 4-star hotel and brewery.
23 décembre 2020
Historical monument classification
Historical monument classification 23 décembre 2020 (≈ 2020)
Protection of the site and its machinery.
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui
Aujourd'hui Aujourd'hui (≈ 2025)
Position de référence.
Heritage classified
The Port Elevatory Factory, in full, with its machinery, including the chimney linked to the former boiler plant, as delimited by a red line and a full/flat on the plan annexed to the decree and appearing in the cadastre of the commune section CI on Parcel No. 37: inscription by order of 23 December 2020
Key figures
Philippe Barré - Architect
Designed the modern extension of the hotel.
Origin and history
The Saint-Nazaire Port Elevatory Factory was built between 1909 and 1911 to accompany the drilling of the south entrance of the port, allowing the floating of vessels with strong draught. Its role was essential: to regulate water levels (between 5 and 6 metres) in the harbour basins, a task carried out by some 60 employees. It initially operated with steam pumps, symbolizing the emerging industrial era in this strategic area of the Loire-Atlantique.
Upgraded between 1947 and 1950, the factory replaced its steam pumps with an electric system (450 horsepower pump) and two diesel pumps, reflecting the technological progress of the post-war period. Two other construction campaigns, in 1958 and 1974, improved its performance. However, its decline began in 1989 with a partial decommissioning, before a final shutdown in August 1993, marked by its replacement by an underground pumping station.
Owned by the Grand Port Maritime de Nantes-Saint-Nazaire, the site has been the subject of ambitious rehabilitation projects. In the 2010s, a "centre of interpretation of the Loire estuary" (CIVEL) was envisaged to enhance local natural and economic heritage. However, the regional majority change in 2015 buried this project. In 2018, a call for expressions of interest was launched, leading in 2019 to the selection of a project to transform into a 4-star hotel with brewery, led by the Nantes managers of the "Brassés" and "Sōzō Hotel". The architect Philippe Barré was commissioned to design a modern six-storey extension to accommodate some 40 rooms.
Ranked a historic monument in December 2020, the building factory today embodies a preserved industrial heritage, bearing witness to the port history of Saint-Nazaire. Its inscription protects the entire building, including its machinery and chimney, emblematic elements of its functional past. Although the premises still partially house the dredging services of the port, its future tourist vocation marks a new page in its history, between industrial memory and contemporary conversion.
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