KAARSENFABRIEK [BE]

Exploration #280. Kaarsenfabriek. This candle factory, known online as Kaarsenfabriek, began in 1902 in Belgium. Converted from a 19th-century gin distillery, it produced stearin candles, devotional candles and floor wax until its closure in 1983.

The former Kaarsenfabriek is not a monumental industrial complex, but a compact factory rooted in local Belgian production. In 1902, the Verougstraete family transformed an older distillery into a candle works under the Union brand, supplying both domestic use and religious demand with household candles, church candles and votive products. Its growth followed the needs of the early 20th century. Around 1925, a new brick building was added behind the main site, giving the factory more space for production. By the 1930s, Union candles had become well known locally, enough for the company to present its products in a striking Art Deco display cabinet at the 1935 Brussels World Exhibition.

After the Second World War, production moved away from manual casting. A wheel-casting system allowed candles to be made in a more efficient line, marking the factory’s shift from craft-based work to small-scale mechanized industry. The decline came with the same pressures that affected many family-run Belgian manufacturers: automation elsewhere, cheaper imports and a changing market.

The factory closed in 1983. Today, its dark rooms, brick halls and surviving industrial traces preserve the memory of a modest but complete candle-making world.

HFB [BE]

Gallery in progress…

Exploration #261 HFB. Hauts-Forneaux B (HFB), located in Seraing near Liège, is a striking symbol of the region’s rich industrial heritage. This blast furnace, part of the larger Cockerill-Sambre steelworks, played a pivotal role in the development of the steel industry in Wallonia, a region historically known as one of Europe’s industrial powerhouses.

Built in 1959, HFB was a cornerstone of the steelmaking process in Liège for decades. Its towering structure and intricate network of pipes, chimneys, and conveyor systems epitomized the industrial ambition of the mid-20th century. The furnace was designed to smelt iron ore into molten iron, which was then used to produce steel. During its peak, the furnace operated continuously, producing hundreds of thousands of tons of iron annually. It provided employment for thousands of workers, fostering economic growth and transforming Seraing into a thriving industrial hub. However, by the late 20th century, global economic changes and competition from other steel-producing regions led to a decline in the European steel industry. HFB was initially shut down in 2009, but operations briefly resumed from April 2009 until April 2010. Despite this short-lived revival, the site was ultimately closed permanently in 2011, marking the definitive end of its industrial activity.

Following its closure, HFB gained a second life as a beloved destination for urban explorers from around the world. The site became an emblem of urban exploration, showcasing the haunting beauty of forgotten spaces while preserving a piece of Wallonia’s industrial identity.

Starting from 2023, most of the HFB site was demolished, marking a significant shift in its story. However, the iconic blast furnace itself and the adjacent boiler house were preserved, reflecting their historical and cultural importance. These remaining structures stand as monuments to Liège’s industrial past, bridging the gap between the region’s legacy and its future. While much of the site is now gone, these preserved landmarks ensure that the memory of HFB endures, continuing to inspire those who cherish its history.

CHARBONNAGE DE FORTE-TAILLE [BE]

Exploration #245 Charbonnage de Forte-taille. The “Charbonnage de Forte-taille” was an old coal mine in Montigny-le-Tilleul, Belgium.

Coal was mined there as early as 1755, through shallow tunnels or by exploiting deposits on the ground. In 1865, a concession was granted to excavate the first deep coal mine, accessible via the shaft called Avenir1, at that time one of the deepest in Europe. Ten years later, in 1875, the SA Franco-Belge du charbonnage de Forte-Taille was founded, which exploited the deposit until its closure in 1935. The closure of the mine was also due to many accidents that led to the deaths of many miners.

The land and buildings were more used as storage by a neighboring company and then used as a deposit for unauthorized waste. In 2002, the head frames were demolished and the area cleared of unauthorized waste. Since then it has been in a new state of neglect.

USINE VERRE VERT [BE]

Exploration #241 Usine verre vert. This factory was a large glassworks producing fireproof glass and ultra-transparent glass for photovoltaic panels.

The company was in excellent health during the last century and, after merging with another Belgian glassworks and being taken over by a leading Japanese flat glass manufacturer, became one of the country’s largest producers. The ever-increasing demand for solar panels at the beginning of the new millennium led between 2004 and 2007 to an increase in production capacity and a major investment to modernise the glass melting furnace.

No one imagined that only a few years later, starting as early as 2011, the situation would change dramatically: as a result of cheap imports of special glass, or just the already assembled solar panel, from China, the European solar glass market went into crisis, causing the entire industry to suffer heavy losses. Usive verre vert eventually closed its doors on 31 December 2014, leaving 190 employees jobless.

After the bankruptcy, almost all the machinery was dismantled and sold to other factories or as scrap. Only the large new furnace remained in the buildings, impossible to demolish due to the huge block of glass that solidified inside it after the shutdown. Of the older installations, however, almost nothing remained. The only survivor was a small room in an electrical cabin in which there were two rotary converters, although much vandalised, probably in service in the first half of the 20th century.

Usine verre vert is not the only abandoned glass factory in Belgium; you can have a look also at the Cristalleries du Val St Lambert.

LA DECAPERIE DE LA PRAYE [BE]

Exploration #212 La decaperie de la Praye. La decaperie was industrial plant where metal was pickled. It closed about ten years ago, as did the steel mill and rolling mill of the same industrial group, located nearby. All the factories belonged to the stainless steel division of this metallurgical monster that is omnipresent in the region. This pickling plant had two storage units were the metal coils were automatically storages by cranes. The buildings are now an empty shell stripped of their machines but still nice the take some photos.

Pickling is a treatment that consists of cleaning the surface layer of the object. The purpose is to remove any impurities left by previous treatments that have released oxides, which occurs for example in forging and hot-rolling processes or in any other process involving the use of high temperatures. The purpose of the treatment is to make the material suitable for the subsequent stages, such as the application of an anti-corrosive layer. Pickling therefore dissolves all iron compounds that are present on the surface of the object. It is these, in fact, that are responsible for deterioration in contact with atmospheric agents.

MONASTÈRE ANTOINETTE [BE]

Exploration #192 Monastère Antoinette. Monastère Antoinette is located in the Belgian district of Liège, in the centre of a small town on the banks of the river Meuse. The monastery was built at the beginning of the 20th century by converting an old castle of which no trace remains today. During its lifetime the monastery housed various religious orders and also German troops during World War II. Since 2008 it has been in a state of neglect and ruin.

The first news about Monastère Antoinette dates back to 1892, when the Sisters of the Congregation of St. Charles moved to this town, inside a castle that was built for the Count of Levignan in 1786. However, it was not until three years later that the sisters left the castle and moved into a new monastery nearby. The castle remained abandoned until 1904 when it was bought by two businessmen and converted into a monastery. The work was so extensive that nothing remains of the old castle.

Upon its completion, the new building was occupied by French Carmelite nuns who only remained there until 1927, when the Benedictine monks took possession. Unfortunately, World War II soon broke out and in 1940, Monastère Antoinette was occupied by German troops. However, the Germans unexpectedly allowed new nuns to settle in the building, which continued to house them after the war.
In 1969, the nuns merged with the Sisters of St Augustine and left the monastery, which was converted into a home for the elderly. Unfortunately, at the beginning of the 21st century, the retirement home Monastère Antoinette was closed.

The last inhabitant left in 2008 and the building was sealed off. Only a year later, there were plans to renovate the property. The new company intended to turn the former monastery into residential flats, but this project was never realised and the complex fell into disrepair.

BLACK COKES [BE]

Exploration #140. Black cokes, whose real name is Cokerie de Marchienne, or Cokerie de la Providence, is a old coke plant which dates back to 1838, when a coke-fired blast furnace was established along the river Sambre by the newborn company Société Anonyme des Laminoirs, Forges, Fonderies et Usines de la Providence (shorten Forges de la Providence). Although coke ovens were present on site since the beginning, a first modern coke plant was established in 1908 to support the three existing blast furnaces. At the time, the Providence steelworks were amongst the largest in the Charleroi region and whole Belgium too.

Improved occurred between the two world wars and in the mid 1930s, additional blast furnaces were built along with a large, modern coke plant. Equipped with a battery of 50 Koppers ovens, it had a capacity of 30.000-32.000 t/m and thus was able to satisfy the requirements of the whole site.

The two coke plants used to work side-by-side until the early 1950s, when the older one was dismantled and the newer improved. In addition to the original Koppers battery two Coppée ones were built, each one counting 26 ovens. This layout persisted for about thirty years, during which Forges de la Providence merged with several other Belgian steel companies until the creation of Cockerill-Sambre in 1981.

The latter controlled all the steelmaking sites in both Charleroi and Liège regions. Being the only one left of its kind in Charleroi, the Marchienne coke plant was improved through the addition of a fourth battery of 20 Didier ovens. This led to an overall capacity of 750000 t/y of metallurgical coke obtained in 122 ovens. Further corporate restructuring led to the creation of Carsid in 2001, which gathered together the last existing primary steel facilities in Charleroi, i.e. the Marchienne coke plant (Forges de la Providence), a sintering plant, a blast furnace and an OMB plant (all three originally belonging to Thy-Marcinelle et Monceau company).

Decreasing steel demand plus the obsolescence of inherited facilities made the life of Carsid lasting for just a few years. The coke plant was run down in 2008, leaving the rest mothballed until the definitive closure in 2012 (source: http://www.st-al.com/).

This industrial area was very large, here you can find explorations of the other zones: the coal injection plant, the water tower, the boiler house.

SLATE FACTORY [BE]

Exploration #127 Slate factory. These machineries belonged to an abandoned slate factory and quarry in a small village in Belgium, in a area where the slate deposits has been known since the 16th century. This mine opened its door at the end of 19th century. Mine started open-pit and in 1918 went underground. The 170 meter deep quarry produced more than a million slates a year. The slate from this mine were dark gray, homogeneous and from extremely good quality. It was mainly used to make rooftiles.

In 1995 the mine closed and from then it stayed abandoned. Most of the buildings have been demolished and the terrain cleaned up. Luckily this building is still standing and luckily it will be preserved because it’s historical heritage.

USINE S [BE]

Exploration #125. Usine S. was founded in the late 19th century and was specialised in the treatment and manufacture of wool. Its architecture is very nice, as are old factories. The place is well preserved and the decay is mainly only due to the passage of time. After being abandoned for almost a century, now the site has a second life as a museum (legal visit).

BLUE POWER PLANT [BE]

Exploration #119. The blue power plant was part of the huge, now abandoned, Cockerill-Sambre steelworks in Charleroi, Belgium. It was built to replace the old power plant aka Wet Dogs, inside the Cokerie de Marchienne, or Cokerie de la Providence. The site hosted once a blast furnace, a steelworks, a rolling mill, a power station and coke plant. Many buildings have been demolished, or partially demolished around this site but this power plant was still untouched.

The boilers was fired by a combination of natural gas and waste gas produced by the cokerie. The place offers a lot of photogenic elements thanks to its vintage aspect and lack of vandalism. Overall it has quite a steampunk vibe to it.

This industrial area was very large, here you can find explorations of the other zones: the coal injection plant, the water tower, the cokerie.