6 Firms Shortlisted for Oil Refinery Deal

Five consortia of multinational companies and one large corporation have been shortlisted for the construction of a 60,000 barrels per day oil refinery and its attendant downstream infrastructures, following the country’s request for qualification issued in October this year.

According to a statement from the ministry of energy and mineral development, 75 firms showed interest in building the refinery. Eight consortia submitted detailed Statements of Qualifications, and six were short-listed to receive the Request for Proposals.

One of these firms or consortia will be selected during the first half of 2014 to lead the construction of the refinery. The refinery is expected to cost about $2bn.

The construction of the refinery alone is estimated to create 4,000 to 6,000 temporary jobs. Once complete, ongoing refinery operations are expected to create more than 650 permanent jobs, most of which will be held by Ugandans.

Below is the list of the companies leading the consortia.

Marubeni (Japan)

The company is one of the biggest in Japan, which is involved in a range of services including oil and gas. Marubeni has more than 55 overseas branches and offices and 33 overseas corporate subsidiaries with 65 offices.

In terms of oil and gas, Marubeni’s energy division is involved in the upstream section, mainly exploration and development of oil and gas fields and uranium mines.

In the upstream resource development business, Marubeni is jointly conducting the oil and gas field exploration, development and production business with international oil majors and leading independent oil development companies in various locations worldwide, including the United States, Gulf of Mexico, the United Kingdom, North Sea, India, Qatar, and Sakhalin.

At the same time, the division is taking part in a uranium mine development project in Kazakhstan. It is also involved in upstream gas exploration in Qatar, Equatorial Guinea, Peru, and Papua New Guinea, as well as a shale oil and gas business in the United States.

Consortium led by Vitol Group

Vitol Group is a Switzerland-based Dutch-owned multinational energy company, founded in 1966. The company’s head offices are located in Rotterdam, The Netherlands and Geneva.

In 2012, Vitol’s revenues were estimated to be $303bn. The company ships more than 400 million tonnes of crude oil per year and is one of the largest independent energy traders in the world. Vitol has interests in various oil storage terminals and exploration and production projects worldwide.

Through its subsidiary, Vitol E&P, it owns exploration and production interests in Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Congo Brazzaville, among others. Vitol also runs the Fujairah refinery company limited, which produces 82,000 barrels per day.

Consortium led by China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau

The company engages in the designing, construction, and management of long-distance petroleum and gas pipelines across China. The company is based in Hebei, China.

China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau operates as a subsidiary of China Oil and Gas Pipeline Bureau. Most of its projects have been in construction of crude and refined oil pipelines.

Consortium led by RT - Global Resources

RT – Global Resources is a consortium of Russian oil companies. RT- Global Resources is a subsidiary of Russian state-owned corporation, Rostec.

The company was created to carry out projects involving raw materials and infrastructure development in Russia and across the world.  The State Corporation Russian Technologies holds a 100 per cent stake in RT Global Resources.

Consortium led by SK Energy

SK Energy is a South Korean company. It is the third largest conglomerate in South Korea. It is composed of 95 subsidiaries and affiliate companies across the globe, with a workforce of more than 70,000 people in 113 offices in the world.

It changed its name from Sunkyoung Group to SK Energy in 1997. It is involved in chemical, petroleum and energy industries. Currently, the firm is constructing asphalt-oriented refinery in Indonesia, among other international projects.

Consortium led by Petrofac

Petrofac is an oil field service company. It has a history spanning 32 years. The company says it “can provide services to customers across the entire spectrum of the oil and gas asset life cycle, on either a stand-alone or integrated basis, under flexible commercial models which are tailored to a customer’s needs.”

The firm operates out of seven operational centres in Aberdeen, Sharjah, Woking, Chennai, Mumbai, Abu Dhabi and Kuala Lumpur and a further 24 offices and 12 training facilities worldwide.

(observer.ug, edited by Topco)