1- Tank Farm Project at Tripoli Oil Installations

Key Highlights

•The Ministry of Energy and Water of Lebanon intends to issue a tender for the award of a concession for operatorship of an oil storage terminal in Tripoli, North Lebanon.

•The terminal will be located on the former off-sites of the Tripoli Oil Refinery, 5 km East of Tripoli. This area is 55 ha large.

•The terminal will have a storage capacity of 430.000 m3 for gasoline, gasoil, kerosene and fuel oil.

•The terminal will use two Conventional Buoy Mooring systems for loading and discharging tankers up to 250.000 DWT.

•The terminal will furthermore have capability for truck loading, blending and fuel oil heating.

•The concession will grant the awarded Operator the right to own and operate the terminal for a period of at least 20 years.

•In the future, the capacity and capabilities of the terminal could be expanded considerably.

Introduction

The Ministry of Energy and Water of Lebanon intends to reconstruct part of the Tripoli Oil Installations. The installation will be used for the storage and handling of gasoline, gasoil, kerosene and fuel oil. This oil storage terminal will be erected on the former off-sites of the now dis-used Tripoli Oil Refinery.

At this moment, the Ministry, through Tripoli and Zahrani Oil Installations (LOIL), is tendering the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) contract for construction of the terminal. The terminal will have a storage capacity of approximately 430.000 m3.

Simultaneously, the Ministry intends to issue a tender for the award of a concession for operatorship of the terminal. This briefing provides information about this intended operatorship.

The Ministry of Energy and Water of Lebanon, through Tripoli and Zahrani Oil Installations (LOIL), intends to issue through a tender a concession that will provide the awarded company (the Operator) the right to own and operate an oil storage terminal. This terminal will be located on an assigned plot of land a few kilometers North of Tripoli, North Lebanon. The concession will be granted for a period of 20 years or longer.

The terminal will be located at the end of the now disused crude oil pipeline that fed the former Tripoli Refinery with North Irak crude from Kirkuk. This pipeline can potentially be renewed which would create the opportunity to use the terminal for crude exports.

                                                                         Logistics capabilities

The terminal will have the following logistics capabilities:

430.000 m3 storage capacity

Port details

The terminal site is located at the sea shore. In this area, the sea slope is conveniently gentle and the weather is generally mild. This allows for maritime product movements not to be handled in a conventional port but by means of Conventional Buoy Moorings (CBM’s). Currently four CBM’s are available. Of these four, CBM #2 and #3 will be used for the initial phase of the terminal. CBM #2 can accommodate 250.000 DWT vessels, CBM #3 can accommodate 90.000 DWT vessels.

Marine loading/discharge rates

The terminal will be designed for initial loading and discharge rates up to 3,000 m3/hr. To enable future expansion, the pipeline system of the terminal will be capable to handle rates up to 6,000 m3/hr.

Inland distribution

The terminal will be equipped with 6 racks to load tank trucks for inland distribution.

Auxiliary capabilities

The terminal will have the facilities to blend products to required specification and to heat fuel oil to the required temperature.

Product  Tank number & size

Gasoline  4 x 32,000 m3

Gasoil  3 x 30,000 m3

Kerosene 3 x 30,000 m3

Fuel oil 4 x 30,000 m3

                                                                             Assigned plot

The concession will concern two plots:

•The main storage area that will accommodate the storage tanks and main auxiliary facilities.

•The (smaller) marine area at the sea shore where the sub-sea pipelines from the CBM’s come ashore.

The area on which the terminal will be erected will be declared a Free Trade Zone.

Besides the area for this concession, a second area is available for further expansion concession(s).

After the Council of Ministers issued decision no. 41/2012 that stated the following:

 “Importing 92 octane of gasoline by the Ministry of Energy and Water – the Oil Installations in Tripoli and Zahrani, allocating it to the transportation sector and requesting both the Ministry of Public Works and Transport and the Ministry of Energy and Power to set the mechanism needed for that purpose. Requesting the Ministry of Economy and Trade to take the appropriate measures for exercising well and strict control over that”.

Lebanese Oil installations management made a huge step towards the implementation of the project in Zahrani Oil Installations, after the completion of tenders and awarding works to contractors.

Completed steps are:

-Loading Arms tenders have been awarded (Ongoing).

-Rehabilitation tenders of tanks 701 and 702 have been awarded and the rehabilitation process is almost finished.

-Pumps tenders have been awarded.

-New onshore pipe line Construction tenders have been awarded (Ongoing).

-Loading Racks Area tenders have been awarded.

The estimated time to finalize the project and start delivering the Gasoline 92 octane product is the beginning of the second half of the year 2013.

3- Coastal Gas Pipeline

The Ministry of Energy & Water intends develop and construct a new buried 36” Natural Gas transmission pipeline from North Lebanon – Tripoli (to be connected to the existing 24” gas pipeline) to South Lebanon – Tyr.

The new 36” pipeline will pass through onshore and offshore predetermined localities. The new pipeline will act as a delivery system to transport Natural Gas supply to the Electrical Power generation processing plants on the Lebanese coastal frontier, as well as factories and industries  in the event to reduce the operational cost of electricity  bill  and  its  generation  and  provide  local  industrialists  financial incentives  to  compete  in  other markets. The pipeline will also supply residential areas with Natural Gas in due course and subsequent to the elaboration of the relevant master plan by the Lebanese Government.

Within this context, the Ministry of Energy & Water has appointed the Engineering Consultant ACE to elaborate the design, specification book and construction tender documents for the four following phases:

1.    From Tripoli Oil Installations to Salaata.

2.    From Salaata to Greater Beirut.

3.    Offshore Greater Beirut Region.

4.    Subsequent to Greater Beirut Offshore, through Khaldeh Region to Tyr.

Project status:

-Pre-qualification of interested companies was done on two phases and the pre-qualified entities were informed.

- ITT is ready to be launched upon minister’s decision.

- Financing of the project is awaiting the Law to be issued by the Lebanese Parliament.

Ministry of Energy and Water – Lebanon Oil Installations launched in April 15, 2013 the RFP for a  Floating Storage Re-gasification Unit (FSRU) located in Beddawi area to supply the Power Plants with Natural Gas between the 13 pre-qualified companies.

This project is essential for Lebanon, since it will bring large savings to the electrical sector and a cleaner environment regarding the toxic gases emission.

Also this project will also supply Natural Gas to the coastal pipeline that will interconnect all coastal existing and future Power plants in addition to the industrial sector and city gas.