The forecast was made based on the work developed so far. Joaquim Fernandes indicated that between February and August of this year, work was done to clear the land where the refinery will be implemented: 3,150,100 square meters of land were cleared of mines. This operation, which cost more than 53 million kwanzas, resulted in the removal of eight undetonated explosive devices, three anti-personnel mines, seven munitions and 5318 metals.
Cited by Angop, Sonangol's executive director explained that the refinery construction project will be divided into three phases. The first, which is already underway, concerns the preparation of the 313 hectares of land and the second and third phases will allow the refinery to become a total oil conversion structure.
In this first phase, where 220 million dollars are being invested, the refinery will be able to produce around 30,000 barrels per day through kerosene treatment and the use of complementary infrastructure, which includes a conventional buoy anchoring system, pipelines and a warehouse capable of holding more than 1.2 million barrels.
The other two phases will allow the refinery to double its daily production and install a new catalytic reformer, a hydrotreater and a catalytic cracking unit.
The last phase of the project is scheduled to take place in 2024/2025 and is related to the improvement of product specifications and quality, thus allowing compliance with environmental standards related to lower carbon emissions.
Reginal Crawford, chairman of the Cabinda Refinery Management Board, took the opportunity to reveal that the service providers that will develop the project have already been contracted and that by the end of December the refinery design will be completed.
It is estimated that by the beginning of next year there will be conditions to proceed with the order of equipment and that in June construction of the refinery will begin, he completed.
Marcos Nhunga, also cited by Angop, admitted that the refinery will be an opportunity to mitigate unemployment, since forecasts point to the creation of around 2000 new jobs in the first quarter of 2022.
The project, valued at 920 million dollars, is the result of an investment by Sonangol and the Emerging Markets Investment Trade Group (Gemcorp). The refinery will be installed in the Malembo plain, about 30 km north of the city of Cabinda.
