Aqaba oil terminal to triple capacity — ASEZA

AMMAN — The Aqaba Development Corporation (ADC) has signed an agreement to triple the unloading capacity of Aqaba’s oil port, an official said on Wednesday.

The JD8.3 million deal entails the expansion of the Southern Industrial Zone oil terminal’s receiving ability from 50 million barrels to 150 million barrels a year, said Nasser Shraideh, the chief commissioner of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA). 

The expansion will be completed in one year under the agreement signed with Ahmad Al Tarawneh and Partners Ltd., Shraideh said in a statement. 

The agreement will save the government around JD8 million a year in fines paid to oil vessels forced to wait to unload their shipments.

“The project will increase the competitiveness of the port. Oil vessels will be able to unload their shipments faster, which will save time and money,” the ASEZA official said. 

The port, he said, is run in line with the highest international standards.

Ghassan Ghanem, the CEO of the ADC, said the project will also enable the port to receive oil shipments at night. 

The port is the only terminal through which Jordan imports oil, gas and liquid chemicals.

Jordan imports about 97 per cent of its energy needs.