Basic design wrapped for BPGIC’s Fujairah refining, storage project

Brooge Energy Ltd. (formerly Brooge Holdings Ltd.) subsidiary Brooge Petroleum & Gas Investment Co. FZE (BPGIC) is nearing full completion of preliminary technical studies for the proposed Phase 3 refinery and storage expansion at BPGIC’s existing terminal operations in Fujairah, UAE, outside the Strait of Hormuz, adjacent to the East coast port of Fujairah on the Gulf of Oman (OGJ Online, May 13, 2019).

MUC Oil & Gas Engineering Consultancy LLC (MUC) has issued the final basic design for BPGIC’s planned Phase 3 180,000-b/d refinery and associated storage terminal with up to 3.5 million cu m (22 million bbl) of capacity, and is progressing with the project’s front-end engineering design (FEED) study, which is scheduled to be completed in the coming weeks, Brooge Energy said on July 15.

“Once Phase 3 is completed, this would bring our total storage capacity [for crude oil, fuel oil, and clean products] up to 4.5 million cu m, which is the equivalent of 28.3 million bbl of oil,” said Nicolaas L. Paardenkooper, chief executive officer of Brooge Energy and BPGIC, reaffirming the company’s strategy to become the largest independent oil storage and service provider in Fujairah.

As MUC works to complete Phase 3’s FEED study, Brooge Energy and BPGIC concurrently are in discussions with global oil majors that have expressed interest in contracting portions of the Phase 3 facility, according to Paardenkooper.

“We plan to ensure that Phase 3 capacity is fully contracted through a multiyear take-or-pay contract [before starting] construction to ensure revenue stability and visibility,” Paardenkooper said.

Completion of Phase 3’s basic design follows BPGIC’s April contract award to MUC for delivery of design and FEED for the project, both of which were due within 3 months (OGJ Online, Apr. 23, 2020). MUC also previously served as technical advisor and designer of storage installations for BPGIC’s Phase 1 and Phase 2 terminals.

The Phase 3 expansion will include the same—though unspecified—technology, technical features, and tank diversification MUC employed in the first two phases, Paardenkooper said in April.

BPGIC signed a land lease agreement in February with Fujairah Oil Industrial Zone (FOIZ) for an additional 450,000 sq m of land on which BPGIC could carry out the Phase 3 storage and refining expansion (OGJ Online, Feb. 11, 2020).