The French glimpsed industry in a different light this summer.
Giant, illuminated images and photographs of people working at INEOS and Petroineos were beamed on to huge storage tanks, and big photographs of the Lavéra refinery were also displayed on buildings in Martigues and Port-de-Bouc.
The occasion – dubbed Industrial Night – was part of European Capital of Culture Marseille-Provence’s tribute to its industrial heritage.
The Lavéra site – including subsidiaries Appryl, Naphtachimie and Oxochimie – is normally closed to the public, but that too opened its doors.
Martine Le Ster, from Petroineos Manufacturing France SAS, said more than 700 people took advantage of the special opening hours and enjoyed bus tours with full commentary from actors.
Elsewhere plays and concerts were staged and other companies’ sites also welcomed streams of visitors.