Methanol Plant MO3000

Industry:
Petrochemical Industry
Country:
Oman

A Continuing Success Story in Methanol Production

Ferrostaal built a methanol plant with an annual capacity of 1.05 million tonnes in Oman. This followed the construction of four methanol plants and two ammonia plants in Trinidad and Tobago.

Designated MO 3000, the plant is situated in the industrial zone of Sohar, on the coast of Oman, 250 km north of the capital, Muscat.

Ferrostaal had a stake in the project company OMC (Oman Methanol Company LLC). The other OMC partners were MHIL (Methanol Holdings International Limited), which belongs to the owners of the methanol plants built by Ferrostaal in Trinidad, and a local company, the OMZEST Group of Oman.

Ferrostaal was responsible for the offshore part of the project. This included engineering and procurement services for the turnkey project. The onshore component, chiefly the local construction and commissioning activities, were handled by the Oman Company Oman Proman Contracting & Trading LLC (OPCT).

Methanol

Methanol, which is obtained from natural gas, is a basic material for chemical processing. Methanol has a high market potential as a fuel for power plants and vehicles (biodiesel) and above all as a feed material for further processing by the chemical industry. At the time of the project the Sultanate of Oman offered investment-friendly conditions which were attracting foreign investors. Priority was being given particularly to large gas-based projects.

The target market for the MO 3000 plant was the chemical industry in Europe and Asia.

Overview
Type of contractEPC
CustomerOman Methanol Company LLC (OMC)
Project3,000 MTPD methanol plan
Plant capacity3,000 tonnes a day (1,050,000 tonnes per year)
Plant siteSultanate of Oman, Sohar
PartnersJM (inc. Davy) (Technology and Engineering), Toyo (Technology and Engineering), Proman (Construction), OMC (Customer)
Turnkey handover2007