Page 10 - DMEA Week 10 2022

DMEA REFINING DMEA

Libya looking ready to fund

South Refinery project

AFRICA THE Libyan government last week said that construction of a 50,000 barrel per day (bpd)
budgetary arrangements are being made to unit near El Sharara. UK-based Petrofac pre-
allocate funds for the development of a new viously carried out a feasibility study, which it
refinery in the south of the country following its updated in 2020.
announcement last year. In 2013, then Prime Minister Ali Zeidan
Following a meeting to discuss the project said that the plant would be built at Awbari,
with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of around 55 km to the east of the oilfield, with a
Health Ramadan Abu Janah, President of the larger, 300,000 bpd unit to be constructed in the
Audit Bureau Khaled Shakshak and chairman northern coastal city of Tobruk. The units were
of the National Oil Corp. (NOC) Mustafa San- intended to cater to local fuel demand. Reports
alla, Finance Minister Khaled Al-Mabrouk was have also suggested that the city of Sebha, to the
quoted by local media as saying that the pro- east of Awbari.
cesses for the allocation of budget for the South Meanwhile, unity government Prime Min-
Refinery were nearly complete. ister Abdulhamid Dbeibah said: “The financial
Abu Janah noted that the project “will perma- coverage is ready for this project and the spec-
nently address the fuel shortage crisis and pro- ifications and technical designs are ready with
vide many direct and indirect job opportunities NOC.”
for young people in the south after completing its He added: “Today we announce the start of a
implementation.” giant step, the actual start of the construction of
In October, the government and the NOC an oil refinery project in the south, [for] which
announced that construction work had begun the people of the region have been waiting for
on the facility in the Awbari area near the coun- many years.”
try’s El Sharara oilfield, noting that the refinery Libya’s current refining slate comprises facili-
that would be built would be completed and on ties at Ras Lanuf (220,000 bpd), Zawiya (120,000
stream within the next three years. Saying that bpd), Tobruk (20,000 bpd) and Sarir (10,000
the facility was expected to cost around $500- bpd), all of which are operated by the National
600mn, Sanalla noted that the facility was pro- Oil Corp. (NOC).
jected to achieve an annual income of $75mn. Operations at each of these, like those at the
Then in late January, NOC said that US firm country’s oilfields and terminals, have been dis-
Honeywell UOP was interested in taking part in rupted at various points over the past decade,
projects in the country, including the southern though Ras Lanuf has been offline since 2013.
refinery, noting that “details of work scope and Last month though, the International Chamber
implementation contracts will be discussed in of Commerce in Paris concluded an arbitration
the coming days.” hearing that may allow NOC to resume opera-
The refinery will be run by NOC subsidiary tions at the facility.
Zallaf Co. to produce LPG, jet fuel and other Meanwhile, NOC said that 330,000 bpd of oil
products, including 1.4mn litres per day of gaso- production was shut in at the El Sharara and El
line and 1.1mn lpd of diesel. Feel oilfields at some point in the last week after
The precise location and full through- a group led by Mohammed al-Bashir had closed
put capacity have not yet been revealed but valves. The company estimates that the closure
plans have previously been announced for the will cost more than $34mn per day. ™

P10 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 10 10•March•2022