Page 6 - AfrOil Week 43 2019

AfrOil PIPELINES & TRANSPORT AfrOil
Angola and Zambia return to pipeline plans
ANGOLA/ZAMBIA
THE governments of Angola and Zambia last week announced that they would finally pro- ceed with plans to develop a refined products pipeline between the two countries.
The project, the plans for which have gone through numerous iterations, is now expected to cost around $5bn, roughly double the figure quoted around a decade ago.
Speaking to press, Zambian Ambassador to Angola Lawrence Chalungumana said that the project would take five years to complete. “The conclusion of these works will facilitate the construction of roads and railways to connect neighbouring countries,” he added.
The long-planned, 1,400-km Angola-Zam- bia Refined Petroleum Multi-Product Pipeline is being developed by Zambian copper firm Basali Ba Liseli Resources (BBLR) and Angolan state oil firm Sonangol.
Currently, Zambia imports nearly all of its fuel from the Middle East, through the Tanza- nian port of Dar-es-Salaam, which is connected to the local 24,000 bpd Indeni refinery by the Tazama Pipeline.
In January, the Zambian Development Agency (ZDA) issued an invitation to interested parties to take up a majority stake in Indeni, with the ultimate objective of upgrading the plant and improving the output and efficiency of its operations.
Since 2009, BBLR has been working with both the governments of Angola and Zambia, and collaborating with financing institutions and strategic technical partners to build the planned pipeline that could transport a min- imum of 25,000 bpd of refined petroleum products.
The first phase of the project was due to have been commissioned by the end of 2013 or early 2014.
The conduit is largely dependent on the
successful completion of the Lobito refinery, which itself has been on the drawing board since the turn of the century, with costs gradu- ally escalating to recent estimates of more than $8bn.
Prospective investors were invited in November to express interest in developing the planned 200,000 bpd high-conversion Sonaref facility at the south coast site in Benguela Prov- ince, as well as the smaller Cabinda unit.
BP, Eni and Total have all previously held talks with Luanda about possible investment, and the Italian firm agreed in late 2015 to review the plans.
A deal signed nearly a decade earlier with Chinese refining giant Sinopec to develop and fund the scheme lapsed. A front-end engineer- ing and design (FEED) study on the Lobito plant was completed by KBR in 2010, while in mid-2015, Engineers India was awarded a con- tract for FEED validation and review of basic engineering and design.
A 1.5-square km site has been allocated just north of Lobito. As previously conceived, the refinery would be built in two phases – the first comprising low-conversion units aimed at satisfying local demand, and the second upgrading the plant’s complexity to produce higher-quality fuels suitable for export.
In May 2011, the oil ministry said that Sonaref would process around 120,000 bpd during its first stage of operation; however, recent statements have made no mention of staged development.
Completion is ambitiously being sched- uled for 2022, with the facility seen processing Angolan heavy crude. With Sonangol yet to award contract for the refinery, the completion date is likely to be pushed back yet again, with the knock-on effect being extended waiting time for the conduit to the Copperbelt.™
PERFORMANCE
NOC officials say Libya needs reform to boost oil production
LIBYA
REPRESENTATIVES of Libya’s National Oil Co. (NOC) said at an industry forum in Tunis last week that the country was capable of increasing crude oil production levels signifi- cantly – and that it would have to work hard to achieve this goal.
Speaking at the Libyan Energy Sector
Development Forum, NOC officials noted that
the North African state was currently producing around 1.3mn barrels per day of crude oil. This
is below the figure of 1.6mn bpd recorded before
the ouster of former leader Moammar Qaddafi
in 2011, but it is the highest figure reported in
the last eight years, they said. 
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 43 30•October•2019