29 January 2011
MUSCAT -- Oman's flagship refiner, Sohar Refinery, plans to source its methanol requirements from the adjoining state-of-the-art plant of Oman Methanol Company (OMC) at the Sohar industrial port. The move will effectively end Sohar Refinery's dependence on imported methanol a key ingredient in the production of the octane-booster TAME (Tertiary Amyl Methyl Ether) used as an additive in the production of motor fuel. Instead, the refinery will tap into supplies from Oman Methanol's 3,000 tonnes per day complex via a proposed pipeline network that will link the two world-scale plants.
A number of engineering firms are bidding for a contract to build the dedicated OMC-Sohar Refinery Methanol Pipeline Facilities. In competition for the contract are Larsen & Toubro Electromech, Gulf Petrochemical Services & Trading, Indian Oiltanking Engineering, TRC Construction, Galfar Engineering & Contracting, Arabian Industries and Towell Infrastructure Projects.
The selected bidder will win a contract from Sohar Refinery to design, engineer, procure, construct and commission the pipeline network. The contract entails the installation of, among other things, a six-inch diameter pipeline, pumping facilities with a capacity to pump 60 cubic metres per hour of methanol product, isolation valves, safety relief valves, distributed control systems and fiscal metering facilities.
When operational, likely before the end of this year, Sohar Refinery will receive a consistent supply of locally produced methanol for its refining processes. The pipeline link is described as a cost-effective alternative to imported feedstock, procured from international markets and shipped to Sohar by tanker. By switching to an indigenous source, Sohar Refinery is not only ensuring security of supply for its methanol needs, but is also demonstrating its commitment to supporting local industry.
Sohar Refinery's requirements of imported methanol feedstock are currently handled by Oman Trading International (OTI), a joint venture of the wholly government owned energy investment vehicle Oman Oil Company SAOC and Vitol, one of the world's leading physical oil trading, marketing and distribution groups. Commissioned in 2006 with an initial capital investment of $1.35 billion, the Sohar Refinery complex features a Crude Unit with a capacity of 116,400 barrels per day (bpd) and a Residue Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit (RFCCU) of 75,260 bpd capacity.
Output includes a wide range of refined petroleum products, including regular and premium gasoline, kerosene, LPG, propylene. The planned pipeline link with Oman Methanol is one of an array of initiatives being implemented by the Sultanate's biggest oil refiner in an effort to expand and modernise its Sohar complex. The upgrade is aimed not only at boosting the plant's capacity to produce refined petroleum fuels for the domestic and export markets, but also its ability to meet its feedstock supply commitments to nearby downstream petrochemical schemes.
The refinery's design capacity will be ramped from the present 116,400 barrels per day (bpd) to 187,774 bpd. As part of the upgrade, several new units will be added and integrated into the existing refinery complex. They include a 71,500 bpd Crude Distillation Unit, 96,800 bpd Vacuum Distillation Unit, 66,400 bpd Once-Through Hydrocracker Unit, 42,400 bpd Solvent De-Asphalting Unit, sulphur recovery unit, sour water stripper units, amine regeneration unit, and isomerisation unit, among other systems.
MUSCAT -- Oman's flagship refiner, Sohar Refinery, plans to source its methanol requirements from the adjoining state-of-the-art plant of Oman Methanol Company (OMC) at the Sohar industrial port. The move will effectively end Sohar Refinery's dependence on imported methanol a key ingredient in the production of the octane-booster TAME (Tertiary Amyl Methyl Ether) used as an additive in the production of motor fuel. Instead, the refinery will tap into supplies from Oman Methanol's 3,000 tonnes per day complex via a proposed pipeline network that will link the two world-scale plants.
A number of engineering firms are bidding for a contract to build the dedicated OMC-Sohar Refinery Methanol Pipeline Facilities. In competition for the contract are Larsen & Toubro Electromech, Gulf Petrochemical Services & Trading, Indian Oiltanking Engineering, TRC Construction, Galfar Engineering & Contracting, Arabian Industries and Towell Infrastructure Projects.
The selected bidder will win a contract from Sohar Refinery to design, engineer, procure, construct and commission the pipeline network. The contract entails the installation of, among other things, a six-inch diameter pipeline, pumping facilities with a capacity to pump 60 cubic metres per hour of methanol product, isolation valves, safety relief valves, distributed control systems and fiscal metering facilities.
When operational, likely before the end of this year, Sohar Refinery will receive a consistent supply of locally produced methanol for its refining processes. The pipeline link is described as a cost-effective alternative to imported feedstock, procured from international markets and shipped to Sohar by tanker. By switching to an indigenous source, Sohar Refinery is not only ensuring security of supply for its methanol needs, but is also demonstrating its commitment to supporting local industry.
Sohar Refinery's requirements of imported methanol feedstock are currently handled by Oman Trading International (OTI), a joint venture of the wholly government owned energy investment vehicle Oman Oil Company SAOC and Vitol, one of the world's leading physical oil trading, marketing and distribution groups. Commissioned in 2006 with an initial capital investment of $1.35 billion, the Sohar Refinery complex features a Crude Unit with a capacity of 116,400 barrels per day (bpd) and a Residue Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit (RFCCU) of 75,260 bpd capacity.
Output includes a wide range of refined petroleum products, including regular and premium gasoline, kerosene, LPG, propylene. The planned pipeline link with Oman Methanol is one of an array of initiatives being implemented by the Sultanate's biggest oil refiner in an effort to expand and modernise its Sohar complex. The upgrade is aimed not only at boosting the plant's capacity to produce refined petroleum fuels for the domestic and export markets, but also its ability to meet its feedstock supply commitments to nearby downstream petrochemical schemes.
The refinery's design capacity will be ramped from the present 116,400 barrels per day (bpd) to 187,774 bpd. As part of the upgrade, several new units will be added and integrated into the existing refinery complex. They include a 71,500 bpd Crude Distillation Unit, 96,800 bpd Vacuum Distillation Unit, 66,400 bpd Once-Through Hydrocracker Unit, 42,400 bpd Solvent De-Asphalting Unit, sulphur recovery unit, sour water stripper units, amine regeneration unit, and isomerisation unit, among other systems.
© Oman Daily Observer 2011
