Blending may fuel energy sector

A container storage facility off the coast of Preah Sihanouk province that allows Cambodia to blend oil before export could hold the key to sustainable growth in the country’s nascent energy sector, according to a Danish oil and gas expert.

With Chevron positioned to lead offshore oil extraction in the Gulf of Thailand by as early as 2016, Tommy Christensen, chief executive of Denmark-based Go4 Bunker Cambodia, presented his “energy roadmap” to government officials and industry experts at the Sunway Hotel on Friday.

Go4 Bunker’s expertise is in the storage and shipment of fuels post-oil extraction, particularly the development of bunkers that can serve as gas stations at sea to supply passing vessels.

“The crude oil in the Southeast Asian region is not a standalone crude oil, it’s a crude oil that needs to be mixed up with another crude oil to meet the demand both in Thailand, which has the largest petrochemical industry in Asia, and also Vietnam and China,” Christensen said.

If he had his way, the storage facility would be stationed around the Koh Wai islands in the Gulf of Thailand, acting as an initial link allowing Cambodia to retain more value from oil extraction.

While Christensen’s roadmap does include future plans for an oil refinery, the $2.3 billion Chinese-backed oil refinery slated for Preah Sihanouk and Kampot Provinces in 2015 is too much, too soon, he said. …

 Daniel de Carteret
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/business/blending-may-fuel-energy-sector