Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has formally inaugurated the White Oil Pipeline Mogas (WOPM) project. WOPM itself is a project of PAPCO, the Pak-Arab Pipeline Company. While addressing guests at the groundbreaking ceremony of the WOPM project, he said that the project will help in promoting the country’s economic growth and bring oil prices down by Rs1 to Rs 1.5 per litre.
“We have changed energy landscape of the country in four years, and today we use best standard oil of the world. I am sure this project will be completed in time and reduce cost since our fuel consumption has been increasing by 20 per cent on yearly basis,” he said, The prime minister said that the new project will strengthen the economic growth of the county, and gave the assurance to transporters that, far from affecting their business, the project will assist them in fuel transportation. Tankers are the backbone of Pakistan’s fuel supply, he said.
In 2005, PAPCO was incorporated with environmental conservation, infrastructure development and the national exchequer in mind, through adoption of the most efficient, economical and safest means of transportation of refined oil to destinations across the country.
PAPCO established the sole white oil pipeline system of the country. The company operates a 786km long countrywide pipeline system transporting HSD from Port Qasim to Mehmood Kot.
Figures available show that with the advent of better global reforms in transportation of white oil across different territories interlinked via land routes, the safest and the most efficient and economical mode of transportation is through the pipeline structure.
The pipeline system has a slated design capacity of 8 MMT p.a., expandable to 12 MMT p.a., with the inclusion of excess storage facilities.
The pipeline has been contributing over Rs115 billion in terms of savings for consumers, in addition to adding massive storage facilities and reducing significant road degradation and safety exposure.
The project envisages a construction period of 24 months and is expected to commence operations by mid of 2019.
With this investment, PAPCO will be able to contribute over Rs400 billion in savings for Pakistani consumers, in addition to adding massive storage facilities and reducing approximately 1,500 trucks per day off roads which will indeed be a significant contribution towards reduction of road safety hazards and environmental and infrastructure degradation.
PAPCO chairman Muhammad Jalal Sikandar Sultan said in his speech that WOPM is meant solely for commercial purposes, primarily meant for augmenting Pakistan‘s energy infrastructure and streamline its oil logistics.
He said that the project has immense socio-economic and strategic benefits by way of cheaper, faster and safer transportation of fuel, reduced road maintenance, reduced congestion, fewer accidents and lower levels of environmental pollution, leading to savings in health costs and it will continue to be reaped for decades to come.
PAPCO invested nearly $134 million towards the building and streamlining the country’s energy-related infrastructure. PAPCO CEO Shuja Uddin Ahmed called the white oil pipeline project an outstanding example of public-private partnership for augmenting the country’s energy infrastructure said.
Governor Muhammad Zubair, Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, the federal secretary of the Ministry of Energy (Petroleum Division), the chairman of the PAPCO Board, Muhammad Jalal Sikandar Sultan and the chairman of DESCON Engineering, Razzak Dawood were among the prominent guests on the occasion.
