Oman is in the final design stages of its project to build a major crude storage terminal in Al-Wusta province on the country’s central coastline, according to project operator Oman Tank Terminal Company (Ottco).

The company expects to complete the first phase of the Ras Markaz Crude Oil Terminal project by 2018, which means the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract should be tendered by the end of 2015.

The front-end engineering and design (feed) study was awarded to Amec Foster Wheeler, the UK-based engineering company announced in January 2015.

Ras Markaz will provide storage, import, export and blending facilities for a final planned capacity of 200 million barrels of crude.

It will be connected via a new 440-kilometre pipeline to the main crude pipeline from Oman’s main onshore oil fields. The pipeline is also in the feed phase.

Ras Markaz was initially planned to be completed by 2017, according to previous announcements by Ottco management.