Horizon Terminals, a wholly owned subsidiary of Emirates National Oil Company (Enoc), has marked the groundbreaking ceremony of its new $142 million bulk liquid petroleum terminal in the Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai.

The fully automated terminal, with a storage capacity of 141,000 cu m and a dedicated 58 km pipeline connecting directly to the Dubai International Airport for the supply of jet fuel oil, is scheduled for commissioning in the fourth quarter of 2013.

Saeed Abdullah Khoory, chief executive officer of Enoc; Yusr Sultan, managing director -Terminals, Enoc; and Fahad Askar, deputy director of Operations, Horizon Terminals, marked the symbolic start of construction of the terminal.

“The construction of the bulk liquid petroleum terminal underlines Enoc’s commitment to partner in the ambitious and visionary growth of Dubai and support its economic diversification initiatives,” said Khoory.

“The terminal adds great value to Dubai’s aviation industry, one of the fastest growing economic sectors of the Emirate.

“This is further bolstered by the growth of Dubai-owned Emirates Airline and the increasing number of annual aircraft movements, set to clock over 560,000 by year 2020. This tremendous growth in the aviation and airline industry needs to be sustained with a timely and reliable supply of jet fuel, which is the primary goal of this new terminal,” added Khoory.

Having recorded more than 51 million passenger arrivals, the Dubai International Airport is on course to becoming the world’s third busiest airport by 2020, set to welcome 98 million passengers.

The Horizon Bulk Liquid Petroleum Terminal will have state-of-the-art and fully automated facilities for receiving jet fuel from marine tankers and from the adjacent Enoc-owned refinery. The terminal will also have tanker truck loading facilities connected to oil tanker berths and associated abilities to ensure seamless supply lines to other airports in the UAE.

The 58 km pipeline to the Dubai International Airport has been developed to the highest safety and capacity standards to meet the growing demand for jet fuel oil, and will also have a branch-off connection to the Al Maktoum International Airport, a statement said. – TradeArabia News Service