Seven companies have bought tender documents for the planned fuel depot project in Kuwait’s Al Mutlaa region, as interest in the project grows, according to industry sources.The state-owned downstream operator Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) issued an invitation to bid on the project in November last year.Companies that have purchased tender documents for the project include:Sinopec (China)Meil (India)Heisco (Kuwait)Petrofac (UK)Larsen & Toubro (India)Two other contractors are yet to be identified.KNPC is still allowing more contractors to join the bidding process and more companies may purchase the tender documents for the project before bids are submitted.Recently, KNPC announced a bid deadline extension for the project.The original bid submission deadline was 13 February 2024 and the latest bid deadline is 30 April 2024.The project is estimated to be worth $850m.The scheme is known as the Al Mutlaa new fuel depot project, and its scope is expected to include:Development of new pumping facilities at the Mina Al Ahmadi and Shuaiba refineriesLaying of cross-country pipelines from the Mina Al Ahmadi and Shuaiba refineriesConstruction of a local market depotInstallation of safety systemsInstallation of fire-fighting systemsConstruction of storage tanksInternal debates are still ongoing over the types of fuel that will be transported to the depot.Expected changes to the fuel storage requirements mean that it is believed that officials are preparing to announce changes to the scope for the project.The facility will store fuels for distribution within Kuwait.Some officials want fuel that does not meet European import standards to make up a high volume of the fuel that is transported to the facility, so that more export-quality fuel is available to be sold to foreign markets.Other officials want the European-standard fuel to be used more widely in Kuwait due to its lower environmental impact.All of Kuwait’s refineries are built near the coast at elevations close to sea level, while the Mutlaa depot is due to be built at elevation.The high elevation of the fuel depot means that pumps will be required to transport the fuel into the depot’s storage tanks.It is believed that changes to the type of fuels stored at the facilities has technical ramifications for the project’s design specifications.In December 2021,UK-based Wood Group had completed the revised front-end engineering and design (feed) work for the long-delayed project to develop the oil products marketing depot in Kuwait’s Jahra Governorate.The project has seen significant delays since feasibility studies were completed in 2013.Feed work was originally completed in 2015, before KNPC decided the original design needed to be revised.Kuwait’s Mina Al Ahmadi refinery was overhauled as part of the $16bn Clean Fuels Project.In September 2021, KNPC brought the final units of its Clean Fuels Project online.The Clean Fuels Project integrated and modernised Kuwait’s Mina Abdulla refinery and the Mina Al Ahmadi refinery.The capacity was increased to 454,000 barrels a day (b/d) at the Mina Abdulla refinery and 346,000 b/d at the Mina Al Ahmadi refinery. (ICE KUWAIT)

Fonte notizia: Meed