Sonker project raises Ain Sokhna port capacity up to 21M tons

CAIRO - 8 October 2017: Sonker bulk-liquids terminal in Ain Sokhna project, which is in the Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone), will transform Egypt into an energy and petroleum products trading hub, chairman of the SCZone Mohab Mamesh said.

During a field visit Sunday, accompanied by Minister of Petroleum Tarek El-Molla, Mamesh said the terminal will be a global center between Africa and the world, according to an official statement.

"Sonker bulk terminal will boost capacity of receiving petroleum products at Ain Sokhna port to be 17 million tons per year, expected to reach 21 million tons," Mamesh said, adding that this project will be among the first projects to be completed at the SCZone.

The project is being developed by Sonker Bunkering Company, which secured $500 million in credit facilities for the project in May, provided by an international financial consortium and Amiral Company, the largest shareholder in Sonker.

Lenders include the International Finance Corporation (IFC), European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Commercial International Bank (CIB).

The consortium will finance 64 percent of the total project, estimated at $320 million, while Amiral Company will finance 36 percent at a cost of $180 million, according to the statement.

Sonker is an Egyptian storage and bunkering company operating at the Ain Sokhna Port on the Red Sea. It was established in 2003 as a joint venture company between Amiral Company, Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation, MISR Petroleum Company and the Ministry of Finance.

Petrojet, the company responsible for the construction of the project, is working on completing phase one, which consists of three tanks with storage capacity of 150,000 cubic meters and three reservoirs of diesel with storage capacity of up to 100,000 cubic meters, in addition to the construction of new 40 kilometer pipelines.

The giant project will play an important role in raising the efficiency of the energy sector’s infrastructure and will therefore boost the economy overall. It will also provide 2,400 direct and indirect job opportunities, the statement read.