MUSCAT : In the lead-up to the commercial launch of Duqm Refinery, scheduled to take place before the end of this year, Duqm Refinery and Petrochemical Industries Company (OQ8) has revealed plans to unlock opportunities to support the further growth of this landmark project in the Special Economic Zone at Duqm (SEZAD).
Those opportunities centre around capacity expansion and product diversification, according to top official of OQ8, a joint venture of OQ Group of the Sultanate of Oman and Kuwait Petroleum International (KPI).
David Bird, CEO – OQ8, said in a recent post that the JV is boldly pursuing “opportunities for expansion and downstream applications”.
“We have identified several such opportunities that capitalise on Duqm’s unique strategic location in proximity to major international shipping lines, leverages our extensive expertise in processing fuels and petrochemical products, and relies on OQ8’s team of leading industry experts,” said the CEO.
“These new and promising opportunities, both capacity growth opportunities, but also product diversification such as bunkering (including military fuels), bitumen production, lubricants, process and transformer oils, etc. will create significant value for all our stakeholders,” he further noted.
Reflecting on OQ8’s recent participation in the 1st Duqm Economic Forum as a Gold Sponsor, Bird underscored the JV’s contribution to positioning Duqm as a “pivotal gateway for businesses accessing international markets”. Given its proximity to the vast markets of the Indian subcontinent, East Africa and Asia, Duqm can play a vital role in facilitating trade and investment, he noted.
In his reflections, the CEO also underlined Duqm’s promising investment appeal once green energy becomes available in abundance in the hinterland. “Bringing energy intensive industry to Duqm, adjacent to Duqm's easily accessible renewable energy sources streamlines the path to decarbonisation while sidestepping logistical challenges of green energy export,” he said
“Coupled with Duqm's attractive investment climate as a free-trade zone to attract energy-intensive industries, the region is optimally positioned to cement its position as a forward-thinking, eco-conscious hub on the global stage, significantly contributing to broader decarbonisation initiatives. As worldwide trends increasingly favour lower carbon-intensive energy, this transition presents vast opportunities for the region's industries to lead in decarbonisation and promote sustainability,” Bird stated further.
Commenting on Duqm Refinery’s imminent commercial launch, Bird noted that the approaching milestone will bolster Duqm’s status as a “critical source of high-quality oil products”, including naphtha, jet fuel, LPG and diesel.
In August, OQ8 had announced the maiden export of naphtha from the refinery – the result of trial operations that had commenced earlier in the year. Crude oil as feedstock for the refinery, sourced from both Oman and Kuwait, has also been arriving at the Ras Markaz Storage Terminal near Duqm, and pumped to the refinery via an 80km pipeline.
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