Siseko Njobeni
9 July 2009
Johannesburg — GRINAKER LTA and Kentz have won the contract to execute national oil and gas company PetroSA's refinery shutdown in October.
In a departure from past practices where it used to conduct its own shutdowns with the help of labour brokers, PetroSA has opted for engineering managing partners. This sees PetroSA keeping up with the industry trend of using such partners.
Sesakho Magadla, PetroSA shutdown manager, yesterday said the move would improve accountability as the companies could be appointed in terms of the construction regulation while labour brokers could not.
PetroSA yesterday said Grinaker LTA and Kentz would conduct the 37-day shutdown at its gas- to-liquids plant in Mossel Bay and the FA offshore gas platform, which is situated 86km south of Mossel Bay.
PetroSA vice-president for operations Dan Marokane yesterday said that the shutdown, which should have been done next year, had been moved forward in order to minimise fuel supply disruptions during next year's Soccer World Cup.
PetroSA sells petrol and diesel to petroleum companies in SA.
PetroSA has budgeted R495m for the shutdown. That amount included costs for labour, materials, hired equipment, accommodation and transport. Value of the contracts to each of the two companies was R50m, Magadla said. She said PetroSA hired two companies to mitigate the risk of contractor nonperformance.
Meanwhile, PetroSA is set to release the second review of the scope document for a proposed liquefied natural gas facility on the southern coast within a week, Marokane said.
PetroSA's gas-to-liquid plant is set to run out of indigenous fuel supply in 2011. To sustain the plant, PetroSA intends to import between 500000 and 700000 tons of liquefied natural gas.
PetroSA wants to connect the imported natural gas in the existing pipeline from the FA gas platform to the refinery. The pipeline brings natural gas from the platform to the refinery.
Marokane said PetroSA was considering several locations on the southern coast. The location of the connection point in the pipeline has been a bone of contention between PetroSA and the community of Vleesbaai, near Mossel Bay.
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