MUSCAT - Leading independent tank storage company Royal Vopak will play a key role in the establishment of an energy park at the Port of Duqm, dedicated to the storage and export of liquid bulk fuel commodities.

The facility will initially handle conventional fuel products and later expand to include green commodities as they come onstream within the Special Economic Zone at Duqm (SEZAD).

Last week, the Netherlands-headquartered company signed a shareholder agreement with Oman Tank Terminal Company (OTTCO) — a subsidiary of OQ Group — to form a joint venture that will invest in and develop the proposed energy park at the port’s Liquid Terminal.

Investments in the new storage and handling infrastructure are estimated to be in the hundreds of millions of dollars, according to Marcel van de Kar, Managing Director of Vopak Oman.

“With this shareholder agreement, Vopak is making its first entry into Oman, specifically in Al Duqm, where we will build what we call an energy park for the storage of different types of energies and products”, van de Kar stated. “This will help the area to develop and eventually become a trading hub for the future”.

With its imminent entry into the Omani market, Vopak becomes only the second major international tank storage company to invest in the Sultanate of Oman, following Advario, which operates at SOHAR Port and Freezone. With a presence in more than 20 countries, Vopak plays a pivotal role in the global energy and chemicals supply chain, providing critical infrastructure for the safe storage and handling of liquid bulk products, including oil, chemicals, gases and, increasingly, new energy carriers such as hydrogen, ammonia and CO₂.

Speaking exclusively to the Observer, van de Kar said the new JV will invest in storage tanks and related facilities at the Liquid Terminal for products such as ammonia, liquid hydrogen, LNG, LPG and other liquid commodities. These facilities will support the storage and handling requirements of new petrochemical projects planned downstream of the Duqm Refinery (OQ8), as well as green molecule projects under development in Al Wusta Governorate. 

Van de Kar noted that, in addition to existing energy flows, the company would also focus on future flows driven by the transition from green electricity to green molecules. He added that hydrogen converted into green ammonia was among the key products being explored in collaboration with Hydrom and various projects in the Duqm area that aim to produce green hydrogen for export through Vopak’s facilities.

Much of the planned new investment in storage capacity is envisioned at the Liquid Terminal in the Port of Duqm, he explained. “As a global leader in tank storage, we believe we can bring a wealth of experience and knowledge in operations, efficiency and innovation”, he said.

“We plan to deploy the technologies and best practices we’ve developed around the world here in Al Duqm. When we talk about investments, we’re looking at several supply chains — and overall, these will amount to hundreds of millions of US dollars”.

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