Singapore's Aster Chemicals and Energy is investing $125 million to upgrade its single buoy mooring and pipeline infrastructure near the Bukom refinery, aiming to restore direct crude deliveries and extend the facility's operational lifespan.
The refiner awarded these engineering contracts to Dutch contractor Allseas and Denmark-based DOF, it said in a statement, without saying when the works will be completed.
"The upgraded SBM pipeline is projected to provide more than 20 years of reliable service," Aster Chemicals said in a press statement.
Other facilities are expected to continue operating normally during the upgrade, which targets completion in 2026, a spokesperson said in reply to a Reuters query.
Aster Chemicals took over operations of the refinery from Shell earlier this year.
Since early 2023, the refinery has been unable to receive crude directly from very large crude carriers (VLCC). Instead, the VLCCs conducted ship-to-ship transfers with smaller tankers which then discharged the oil at the refinery, Kpler shiptracking data showed.
Shell conducted extended repairs at this shipping facility in mid-2023, Reuters reported.
(Reporting by Trixie Yap; Editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar)