Eight companies have been invited to submit bids by 5 July for the estimated $650 million engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract. A site visit has been set for 15 May. The expansion will increase the existing refining capacity by 24 per cent. The contract will involve the installation of a new continuous catalytic reformer (CCR) unit, naphtha and gasoil hydrotreaters and an isomerisation unit, as well as increasing the capacity of topping units through the addition of a preflash tower. It will also entail utilities and offsites and infrastructure works.

The naphtha hydrotreater, CCR and light naphtha isomerisation unit will utilise technology from France's Institut Francais du Petrole (IFP), as will the deep gas oil hydrotreater, which includes an amine treating section and a sour water stripping unit. The sulphur recovery plant will use technology from Germany's Lurgi.

The control systems package will cover the installation of pneumatic control units and a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system. Five companies have been prequalified to supply the new equipment. They are Siemens of Germany, the UK office of Europe's ABB, Japan's Yokogawa, the US' Invensys Process Systems and Fischer-Rosemount, part of Emerson Process Management, also of the US.