AquaChemie Middle East - a leading regional player for process industry chemicals and part of the UAE-based AquaChemie Group - has formally inaugurated its Petrochemical Terminal in DP World’s Jebel Ali Port in Dubai
The advanced US$50mn terminal will be one of the most functional and versatile bulk liquid terminals in the GCC region, serving as a vital gateway to facilitate and boost the growing petrochemical trade between manufacturers and end-users across the Middle East and globally.
The facility was officially inaugurated on 2 February 2023 by Abdullah Bin Damithan, CEO & managing director, DP World UAE & JAFZA; guest of honour, Dr Aman Puri, Consul General of India, Dubai & Northern Emirates; together with Subrato Saha, managing director, AquaChemie; and Anand Kumar, managing director, AquaChemie; in the presence of senior DP World and JAFZA officials, industry associates, and the media.
AquaChemie commissioned the global engineering, management, and development consultancy, Mott MacDonald, for the new facility’s detailed engineering and project management, with the region’s leading mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, and civil contractors also being on board for the project’s completion in record time.
The facility has been fully CDI-T (Chemical Distribution Institute - Terminal) assessed and is ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, and ISO 45001:2018 certified. The terminal has already serviced the first vessel carrying chemicals.
The Chemical Terminal covers an area of 20,000 sq m and is located some 500 m from Chemical Berth 4 in Jebel Ali Port. The new facility is linked by five SS pig-gable jetty pipelines, making it one of the most functional and versatile bulk liquid terminals in the GCC region.
With a total storage volume of over 34,000 cu/m, the 26 large tanks in tank-farm A, B, C, and D are well-equipped to handle over 100 UN Class 3 and 8 chemicals. The terminal has three tanker truck loading bays for top and bottom loading of tankers and ISO tanks, five semi-automatic drumming lines, a warehousing facility with over 6,300 drums, a dedicated ISO tank storage area, and a weigh bridge at the truck entry point.
The terminal is fully monitored and controlled from a central control room.
"Our new state-of-the-art terminal is a step towards backward integration of our current oil and gas offering for the upstream and downstream petrochemical sectors. The supply reliability and lower supply chain cost will immensely benefit our existing customers as chemicals will be delivered on time so that the customers’ operations are not disrupted,” Kumar explained.
“The new terminal will also assist in the formation of strategic alliances with regional and global manufacturers of petrochemicals, in order to distribute bulk products to customers in smaller packaging. To maximise capacity utilisation and partially offset operation costs, a few tanks in the new facility will be leased for third-party storage. Chemicals hold enormous promise for the region. We hope, humbly, to contribute to this value chain,” he added.
