Wood contributes to landmark OQ8 project completion

In a significant development for the Gulf region's energy landscape, the OQ8 Refinery has officially commenced operations, marking the successful culmination of a decade-long collaboration with Wood.

Since 2014, Wood has delivered Pre-Front End Engineering Design (Pre-FEED), Front-end Engineering Design (FEED) and Project Management Consultancy (PMC) Services over the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) phases of this landmark project, which is already transforming Oman’s refining capabilities.

The refinery, owned and operated by OQ8—a joint venture between OQ, a subsidiary of the Government of Oman, and Kuwait Petroleum International, a subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation — has a processing capacity of 230,000 barrels a day.

It produces a variety of essential products, including diesel, jet fuel, naphtha, liquefied petroleum gas, sulphur and petcoke. As the largest investment between two Gulf countries in the refineries and petrochemicals sector, OQ8 plays a strategic role in the Special Economic Zone of Duqm (SEZAD) on the southeast coast of Oman. Notably, it is the first refinery in the Gulf to operate using imported crude oil and had been designed to process a diverse range of crude types.

Wood’s scope of work

Wood’s involvement began with its Reading, UK, office conducting the Pre-FEED in 2014. Following this, Wood’s UK processing experts were selected to deliver the FEED, completing it in late 2015.

Site preparation was concluded in 2016 and EPC contracts were awarded in February 2018 to consortia comprising six global contractors, divided into three packages.

Package one for the processing units was awarded to Daewoo E&C and Technicas Reunidas. Package two included the utilities and offsite was awarded to Samsung Engineering and Petrofac. Package three for the storage, export, and pipeline between the crude oil storage, refinery, and crude oil storage facilities was awarded to Saipem and CB&I.

To ensure the successful execution of these contracts, Wood’s Oman PMC team was selected to work within an Integrated Project Management Team (IPMT) alongside OQ8. The team oversaw engineering and procurement activities before transitioning to the construction phase on-site.

Navigating project challenges

Complex project management – The OQ8 project presented numerous challenges that required adept management and coordination. One of the main hurdles was managing the complex interfaces between the three EPC packages while engaging various stakeholders, including utilities providers, port authorities, and oil storage terminals, as well as SEZAD. This also involved coordinating project activities across multiple subcontractors and geographies, including the many small Omani contractors to meet the In-Country Value (ICV) requirements.

Covid - In late 2019, the onset of the Coronavirus pandemic further complicated the execution. Adhering to local and global health and travel guidelines necessitated that team members remain on-site for extended periods, preventing family visits and negatively impacting their mental wellbeing. Wood’s local and regional management teams were acutely aware of these impacts and extended support to help employees maintain their mental health during challenging times.

Scale - The refinery itself called for 10 main processing units to broaden its output product range. Due to the technical complexity and scale of the project, the pre-FEED and FEED work conducted by our technical experts in Reading needed to be robust.