News bulletin – storage terminals

NEWS BULLETIN

STORAGE TERMINALS

OILTANKING PLANS JOLIET SALE

Oiltanking has agreed to sell its Joliet terminal, located in Channahon, Illinois to regional terminal operator Omega Partners. The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter. Although Oiltanking is continuing to develop its North American network, it sees the Joliet site – which has a tank capacity of 44,600 m3 and primarily handles specialty chemicals and biofuels – as a poor fit with its overall context.

The sale is also part of Oiltanking’s Strategy 2025, under which it is continuously evaluating and optimising its global terminal portfolio. “Since the acquisition of the facility in 2009, Oiltanking and the local team in particular have done a tremendous job of continuously improving operational performance and customer satisfaction. We are pleased to hand over the terminal to a strong US player with proven experience in terminal operations and who recognises the capabilities and potential of this facility,” says Jerry Hardman, vice-president, business development Americas for Oiltanking.

Omega Partners, based in St Louis, Missouri, owns and operates bulk liquid petroleum terminals in Illinois, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Nevada and Kentucky. Its customer base comprises major and independent oil, distribution, trading, chemical and agriculture companies. www.oiltanking.com www.omegapartnersllc.com

NNOAT FILLS UP

Noord Natie Odfjell Antwerp Terminal has completed construction of a new tank pit, offering 12,700 m3 of capacity in seven stainless steel tanks and taking overall capacity at the site up to 390,000 m3. The new tank pit is part of the company’s ongoing expansion programme at the site, which handles a wide range of chemicals and base oils. www.noordnatie.be

TERQUIMSA TANKS FOR TARRAGONA

Vopak Terquimsa has begun a €14m construction projects at its terminal in Tarragona, Spain, which will add 17,000 m3 of new tankage in four tanks and take total capacity up to more than 470,000 m3. “We want to continue reinforcing our leading position in Tarragona,” says CEO Eduardo Sañudo. “Tarragona is a strategic enclave at European level when we talk about the storage of chemical products”.

The work, expected to take 10 months to complete, marks the third phase of the expansion of the concession in the Chemical Dock at Tarragona and coincides with Terquimsa’s 50th anniversary. www.vopakterquimsa.com

ODFJELL PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

Odfjell has revealed details of its planned buildout of Odfjell Terminals Houston, where three tanks are currently being brought back into service. A final investment decision will be made “shortly” on the second phase, which will involve construction of up to 35,000 m3 of new tankage for speciality chemicals, likely to be in service in 2022.

A third phase, involving development of adjacent land known as ‘The Point’, could involve up to 165,000 m3 of new capacity for speciality chemicals; a final investment decision on this work depends on securing an anchor customer, Odfjell says, with construction likely to take place between 2022 and 2026.

Odfjell has meanwhile sold its 50 per cent stake in the 119,200-m3 chemical terminal in Dalian, China. VTTI paid $59m in the deal, which marks its first foray into China and broadens its chemical storage portfolio, “unlocking further growth opportunities”, as it says. The Port of Dalian Authority retains the remaining 50 per cent share. Odfjell had earlier signalled that it was considering exiting China along with the departure of its former investment partner Lindsay Goldberg. www.odfjell.com

MAASTANK PLANS BOTLEK EXPANSION

The Dekker Group has announced plans to expand its Maastank terminal in Rotterdam, having renewed its existing lease in Botlek and signed a contract to take adjacent land. This will allow Maastank to double capacity to some 140,000 m3 over the coming years.

“By entering into this new long-term lease for our existing and newly allocated sites, we plan to further strengthen and expand our market position in this strategic ‘deep sea location’ based on our position as the foremost provider of specialised tank terminal services for high-grade special vegetable oils, oleochemicals and biofuels,” says managing director Jan Duel.

“The Port Authority welcomes this expansion by the Dekker Group. It aligns very well with the Port Authority’s policy to revitalise Botlek into a modern port area that can take on ports elsewhere in Europe with confidence,” says Ronald Paul, COO of the Port of Rotterdam Authority. www.dekkergroep.com

HES ADDS LSFO PRODUCTION

HES Wilhelmshaven Tank Terminal has announced commercial startup of a new processing unit (above) designed to produce 2.5m tonnes of low-sulphur fuel oil (LSFO) per year. The revamp of the existing vacuum distillation unit was prompted by the introduction of the IMO 2020 rule on sulphur oxide emissions from ships and the ensuing demand for low-sulphur grades. HES has signed a long-term deal with an energy major to guarantee throughput.

‘We very much appreciate the confidence of one of our existing customers at our Wilhelmshaven terminal as a strategic facility to supply their key LSFO markets,” says Gerrit Groen, director, strategy and business development at parent HES International. “The commissioning of the LSFO unit adds another important value to our portfolio. At HES we continue to build a unique platform of best-in-class liquid bulk terminals, including the state-of-the-art HES Botlek Tank Terminal (Rotterdam), the product-specific bitumen terminal (Rotterdam) and the construction of the 1.3m-m3 HES Hartel Tank Terminal in Rotterdam. These investments underline our strategy and the commitment of our shareholders to further grow in the liquid bulk segment, both in storage as well as in ancillary services.”

The distillation unit was built in 2004 and only operated for five years so was still in good condition. As well as low-sulphur fuel oil, the unit’s output includes gasoil, kerosene and naphtha. www.hesinternational.eu

VITOL TO BUNKER AT STATIA

Prostar’s GTI Statia (GTIS) terminal has signed a long-term agreement with Vitol under which Vitol will operate the marine fuel bunker supply business at the terminal in St Eustatius in the Caribbean. GTIS will continue to provide storage, services and logistics infrastructure as before.

“It is part of Prostar’s continuing strategy to focus on GTIS’ storage operations and to reinvest capital into capacity expansion to meet strong customer demand,” says Dave Noakes, senior managing director of Prostar Capital. “Vitol is one of the largest energy traders in the world and is a significant customer at GTIS and at Prostar’s other storage terminals globally. This new initiative will strengthen our relationship with Vitol and will be immediately accretive for both organisations while bringing significant value to GTIS’ customer base in the regional bunker market.”

“This transaction builds on the $100m capital investment plan for the terminal we announced in March and demonstrates our support and commitment to GTI Statia, the terminal’s strong operations team and the local economy,” adds Steve Bickerton, senior managing director at Prostar. www.prostarcapital.com www.vitol.com