Oman's Sohar Refinery Expansion Ahead of Schedule

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Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries Company's (Orpic) (Oman) multi-million-dollar Sohar refinery improvement project is running ahead of schedule, with 41.4% of engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) activities completed.

"The physical progress as of January 2015 achieved on the project's EPC activities was 41.4% against the scheduled 38.3%," said Orpic Chief Executive Officer Musab Al Mahruqi.

The project's $2.1 billion EPC contract was awarded in 2013 to a joint venture (JV) between Daelim Industrial (KRX:000210) (Seoul, South Korea) and Petrofac International (LSE:PFC) (London, England), on a lump-sum turnkey basis.

Momentum on the project gathered after the awarding of all subcontractor contracts and the move to the project site. The project is scheduled for completion by the end of 2016. It is driven by the need to upgrade the refining capability to further maximize the value of Oman's crude oil. The project is expected to increase the refinery's output more than 70% to 198,000 barrels per day.

The expansion will include a vacuum distillation unit, hydrocracker unit, delayed coker unit, isomerization unit and a bitumen blowing unit.

For related information, see August 25, 2014, article - Civil, Piping Contract Awarded for $1.2 Billion Expansion of Sohar Refinery in Oman.

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