Local fuel distributor Afric Oil’s $1-million upgrade project at the Beitbridge oil depot, in Zimbabwe, which Afric Oil bought in October 2014, is expected to be completed by April.

Once completed, the fully automated depot will distribute about 20-million litres of fuel a month and will create more than 100 permanent jobs in the border town of Beitbridge over a two-year period.

Afric Oil CEO Tseke Nkadimeng tells Engineering News that the upgrade, which started in April last year, is aimed at improving the overall efficiency of the facility with regard to not only equipment, such as installing new pumps and flowmeters, but also reporting and acquiring data from the depot.

To help improve the information systems at Beitbridge, Afric Oil has opted to install global automation soft- ware company Honeywells’ Terminal Manager software to automate all bulk liquid terminal operations, including all key monitoring and controlling functions, such as product receipt, gate access control and loading.

Nkadimeng explains that oil will be transported from Beitbridge and then stored at refineries in South Africa, predominantly in Sasolburg, in the Free State, and in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal.

He adds that Afric Oil will hold the stock on bond, which will enable the company to hold and distribute oil stock without having to lay out cash on taxes and then claim it back from the Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra).

Nkadimeng highlights that working with Zimra will hopefully demonstrate to South African authorities that Afric Oil can manage coastal-based terminals locally for the purpose of exports.

Oil product stored in South Africa will be exported to markets in Zimbabwe, Zambia, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Mozambique.

“This is an exciting time for us as a small distribution company in South Africa,” Nkadimeng highlights, noting that Afric Oil has experienced significant growth since it was founded in 1995.

“The Beitbridge depot enables us to hold product at a number of local facilities, which can then be exported throughout the Southern Africa region,” he concludes.