Shell Petroleum Development Co. of Nigeria Ltd. has begun conversion of its Ughelli quality control center to an oil pumping station. The $50 million project is slated for completion in June.
The center, which was built in 1967, was originally designed to process and separate water from wet crude oil received from about 13 oil fields in the Western Division. It was later moved to the Forcados terminal.
After the project, the unit will be operationally restricted to pumping wet crude from nearby oil fields to the Forcados terminal. The terminal has recently undergone a $450 million upgrade, and it now is equipped with oil-water separation facilities.
As part of the effort to accelerate the project, major equipment has been installed and linked to the main process line. Already in place are the main crude export pumps and turbines, power generation and distribution systems, low-voltage distribution systems, electricity-driven crude transfer pumps, fire and gas systems, and tank gauging systems.
The conversion is part of Shell�s program to upgrade all of its equipment and facilities in the region to enhance production capacity. As part of this program, all flow stations and flow lines more than 15 years old were upgraded, while repairs were carried out. The Bonny terminal also was rehabilitated.