BMT Handles Cargo for Basra Refinery Upgrade Project

Basra Multipurpose Terminal has been tasked with handling cargo for the Basra Refinery Upgrade Project, or BRUP, which will include some of the largest industrial components ever to be discharged in Iraq.

The overhaul at the Basra facility in southern Iraq is designed to boost processing capacity from 210,000 to 280,000 barrels per day, or b/d.

Refinery owner South Refineries Company, part of Iraq’s Oil Ministry, awarded Japanese Gasoline Company an EPCC contract in 2020 to install a number of primary processing plants, including a fluid catalytic cracking unit, a vacuum distillation unit and a diesel desulfurization unit.

The project, aimed at reducing dependence on imported fuels, is slated for completion in 2025, according to the Japanese contractor.

Erkan Erkocu, general cargo operations manager at BMT, told Breakbulk the main inland transport contract began in September and would run through to March 2024. The largest units slated for delivery would weigh up to 870 tonnes and measure 83 metres long.

“We have already started to receive some super out-of-gauge cargo, with the first batch of the heaviest and longest pieces expected to call at BMT by February,” Erkocu said.

According to the executive, the planning phase of the project involved a comprehensive assessment of the port’s existing structures including quays, yards and storage space, and the turning radius of transport assets.

“These challenges can be overcome by proper communication and execution between all parties involved including port authorities,” Erkocu said.

BMT is the largest multipurpose terminal at Umm Qasr, handling about 60 percent of the facility’s project cargo volumes. The company also operates in the container, dry bulk, general cargo and RoRo sectors.

BMT, whose fleet comprises six mobile harbour cranes including two Liebherr LHM 550s, previously handled cargo for the major Karbala Refinery Project. The 140,000 b/d refinery south of Baghdad began processing crude in September.

BMT will be exhibiting at Breakbulk Middle East 2023, taking place on 13-14 February at the Dubai World Trade Centre in the United Arab Emirates.

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PHOTOS: BMT handles OOG cargo for the BRUP. CREDIT: BMT