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TANKS ON TIME EXPANSION • GPS IS DELIVERING ON ITS GROWTH PLANS, WITH A NEAR-DOUBLING OF CAPACITY AT ITS AMSTERDAM TERMINAL AND WORK ONGOING IN MALAYSIA AND THE UAE GLOBAL PETRO STORAGE (GPS) has expanded its Amsterdam terminal with six new storage tanks, taking capacity from 148,500 m³ to 282,500 m³ in 17 tanks. GPS says the move is part of its international programme of development and acquisitions, and has created a state-of-the-art facility for the storage and blending of gasoline, gasoline components and biofuels. “The new storage tanks will create a larger and more bespoke terminal facility offering increased capability and a high degree of
NEW TANKAGE AT THE AMSTERDAM TERMINAL WILL ACT AS A HUB FOR FURTHER INVESTMENT
flexibility,” GPS says. “The expansion will mark the latest achievement in GPS’s strategic partnership with Varo Energy and the Port of Amsterdam. In addition to gasoline, gasoline components and biofuels, the terminal can also handle other commodities to allow the company to meet a growing consumer demand for greater flexibility.” Eric Arnold, CEO of GPS, says: “The opening of this facility is an important milestone for GPS. The investment in increased capacity and flexibility which are now built into the Amsterdam terminal reinforces GPS’s commitment to providing customers with world-class assets, while pursuing our global expansion plans. We’re excited by the possibilities of our expanded site and
are committed to additional investments here in Amsterdam that will ensure both GPS and our customers are well positioned to capture future opportunities.” GPS acquired the terminal, the former ‘Hydrocarbon Hotel’, from Varo Energy in December 2016, making its first move into the storage terminal business. GPS is based in Singapore and backed by funds managed by Blue Water Energy and White Deer Energy. MORE IN ASIA As part of the expansion of the Amsterdam terminal, GPS is also developing a railcar handling facility adjacent to the terminal, so as to be able to offer a cost-effective and sustainable alternative to road and river transport for a range of energy and chemical commodities. The development complements the Port of Amsterdam’s sustainability strategy objectives, which endorse the importance of good rail connections to and from the Amsterdam port region. GPS’s investment programme includes construction of a 134,000-m³ LPG terminal in Port Klang, Malaysia, which is due in service early in 2021. This $300m project in being carried out in partnership with Equinor, which plans to use the terminal as a hub for the storage and blending of LPG grades. It will be equipped with a jetty capable of handling VLGCs and will store LPG in refrigerated tanks, though it will also be able to supply pressurised gas. Equinor will supply LPG from the facility to customers in Malaysia as well as in India, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Indonesia and Vietnam. GPS has reserved another plot of land at the port where it is planning to develop and LNG import and distribution terminal. GPS is also working on a greenfield project in Hamriyah, UAE, in a joint venture with Innova Refining and Chemie Tech. The terminal will provide services for industrial reprocessing of waste oils, trading, import and bunkering. Construction started in October 2018 and the terminal is due in service soon. GPS sees the project, its first foray into the Middle East, as a key strategic hub around which it will make further investments. www.gpsgroup.com
HCB MONTHLY | JANUARY 2020
