Dubai-owned ENOC Group records increase in storage demand across facilities globally

The Dubai government owned ENOC Group has reported a significant surge in the demand for storage across its terminals in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Morocco and Djibouti.

Through its wholly owned subsidiary and independent terminal, Horizon Terminals, ENOC Group owns and operates six terminals in the UAE and four more in global markets.

These ten terminals have a total combined storage capacity of 6.6 million cubic metres spread across 346 tanks.

Of this, 4.19 million cubic metres storage capacity belongs to 211 tanks in the UAE, and 2.47 million cubic metres belongs to 135 tanks outside the UAE, reported news agency WAM.

“To meet the growing demand for oil storage, Horizon Terminals has further optimised capacity for chemical, petroleum and gas products across all its storage facilities,” said Saif Humaid Al Falasi, group CEO of ENOC.

With the introduction of International Maritime Organisation (IMO) 2020 regulations cutting the allowable sulphur emissions from marine vessels from 3.5 per cent to 0.5 per cent, storage demand for low-sulphur fuel oil is set to increase and remain steady till the end of 2021.

“We are well-prepared to fulfil our mandate and provide uninterrupted fuel supply. Our robust supply chain and terminalling infrastructure will meet the storage requirements of our stakeholders.

“We have invested significantly in scaling up our storage infrastructure in the past years and now we are uniquely positioned to meet the growing demand for storage,” added Al Falasi

Also the increased demand for bulk liquid storage at ENOC’s facilities is attributed to a steady increase in oil prices, as customers seek storage provision due to the weakening demand for oil as a result of the Covid-19 crisis.

“With oil prices set to revive by mid-2021, demand for storage will continue to be robust. Our goal is to be the largest independent terminal service provider for bulk oil storage in the Middle East, Africa and the Mediterranean, while maintaining a leading position in the Far East region,” added Al Falasi.

Horizon Terminals has implemented a number of measures to ensure business continuity during the pandemic including managing a standby fleet of tankers to transport products as required between terminals in Jebel Ali and Fujairah as well as limiting ship-shore interactions.

Precautionary measures to ensure the safety of employees on-site included screening and restriction of entry on terminals, putting distribution teams on weekly rotations and segregating office employees to work from home, among additional measures, to prevent the transmission of the Covid-19 virus.