By Mostafa Fahmy
Mashreq Petroleum Company is set to complete the first phase of its project to store petroleum products and fuelling ships within the next two months, company chairman Tarek Abu Bakr said.
The phase’s worth has been valued at a total cost of EGP 450m ($60mn), which it will finance.
The company has spent $30m to dig in Port Said, and is preparing to build four containers to store petroleum products worth $30m, Abu Bakr said.
The company’s storage project received Cabinet approval in May 2013, following a long period of disputes and debates between the company’s board of directors and the government. Abu Bakr said the company has approached a number of international firms to assist in executing the project, but talks ground to a halt following political and economic developments.
He added that the company will renew its talks with four firms in the Far East and Europe, following an improvement in political and economic circumstances in the wake of Egypt‘s recent Economic Summit.
“Investors were concerned about the situation in Egypt, but now that it has stabilised, we can reach agreements with the foreign partners within a month or two,” he said.
The total cost of the storage and ship fuelling project is EGP 2.2bn ($300m), to be completed within the next two years or three. For the financing of the second phase, Mashreq aims for a foreign partner to take on 40% of its expenses.
