Name and Location
Saldanha liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) bulk importation terminal project, Western Cape, South Africa.

Client
Sunrise Energy, owned by Ilitha Group (51%) and State-owned financier the Industrial Development Corporation (49%).

Project Description
The project involves the development of an LPG import terminal adjacent to the Port of Saldanha, in the Western Cape. This project is being implemented in response to current LPG supply shortfalls in the province and is in line with the Department of Energy’s goal to improve South Africa’s energy mix and provide lower-income households easier access to cleaner energy.

The facility will be open access, with the infrastructure accessible to third-party LPG distributors, importers and bulk consumers.  The terminal will have a Phase 1 throughput capacity of up to 17 500 t/m, facilitated by 5 500 t of storage. Modular expansion of the receiving storage, in Phases 2 and 3, will enable an increase in throughput capacity in line with market growth, up to a maximum of 52 500 t/m.
Sunrise Energy is a terminal operator and not a trader or owner of LPG stock.  The terminal enables the safe receipt of consolidated parcels of LPG from ship, for and on behalf of terminal customers and distributors.  This enables the most economical supply of LPG to the downstream market.

Value
Phase 1, R800-million.

Duration
Fabrication of the LPG storage bullets started in August 2013, with bulk earthworks on site having started in early 2014.
Phase 1 of the facility is expected to be commissioned in mid-2016.

Latest Developments
Following a rigorous and transparent Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) Section 56 tender process, TNPA awarded Sunrise Energy a 30-year concession to build and operate the open-access LPG import terminal.  The terminal operator agreement between TNPA and Sunrise Energy was subsequently signed in June 2013.

The project was also awarded a National Energy Regulator of South Africa construction licence in 2010, with all necessary environmental authorisations having been obtained to enable the start of construction.

The R800-million initial phase of development involves the construction of 5 500 t of receiving storage, comprising five off-mounted storage bullets of 60 m x 7 m diameter each. 

These storage bullets will be the largest vessels of their kind manufactured in the southern hemisphere and are being fabricated by local manufacturer, Elgin Engineering, adjacent to the Sunrise Energy site, in Saldanha Bay.

Future expansion of the facilities is possible by the addition of storage bullets in phases 2 and 3, which will allow for a maximum of 52 500 t/m to be imported using the terminal and distributed into the region.
The LPG ships will transport LPG product originating from refineries typically located in the West Coast of Africa, for example Angola or the Gulf of Guinea. These vessels will use a multibuoy mooring system and a subsea and an overland pipeline to transfer the LPG to the onshore receiving storage.

The product will be odourised and blended to specification and will then be dispatched from the terminal by various means, including road tankers, rail tankers, direct cylinder filling and direct pipeline transfers to bulk consumers/distributors and local industry.

The project is at an advanced stage of detailed design, with the fabrication of the long-lead bullets in progress. Bulk earthworks, site clearance and fencing have been completed, with major construction work on site to start once detailed design is complete.  The facility is scheduled to be commissioned in mid-2016.

Key Contracts and Suppliers
Elgin Engineering (storage bullets); Jacobs Matasis (engineering, procurement and construction management); PRDW (marine engineering) and Baseline Civil Contractors (bulk earthworks)

On Budget and on Time?
The project is currently delayed by a year due to challenges in the South African regulatory environment and irregular interference by third parties.

Contact Details for Project Information
Sunrise Energy, tel +27 21 551 4866 or email info@sunrise-energy.co.za.
Elgin Engineering, tel +27 31 274 0000, fax +27 31 205 7097 or email enquiries@elgin.co.za.
Jacobs Matasis, tel +27 21 552 9993 or email info@matasis.co.za.
PRDW, tel +27 21 418 3830, fax +27 21 418 3834 or email info@prdw.com.