August 19, 2015 [Cyprus Mail] - The relocation of strategic oil reserves from the Larnaca seafront to the Vasilikos Energy Centre has been completed last Friday, the ministry of energy said yesterday.
The reserves, held by KODAP (Cyprus Organisation for the Strategic Management of Oil Stocks) were stored in the state fuel storage company’s facilities (KETAP) in Larnaca. From January 2008, Cyprus has had the obligation to maintain national fuel stocks of up to 90 days consumption. This responsibility was assigned to KODAP.
The move of the reserves to VTTV’s facilities in the Vasilikos area was completed following an agreement signed between the government and the company, earlier in the year.
The three-year contract provides for the storage of up to 132,000 cubic metres of fuel in the company’s terminal. Each cubic metre consists of 1,000 litres.
Moving the reserves from Larnaca, was the subject of a cabinet decision in July 2014, in response to a long-standing demand by the town’s residents. In addition to the strategic reserves, private companies will have to move their liquid gas and liquid fuel facilities out of Larnaca by the beginning of 2017.
“For the final movement of all oil and gas reserves from Larnaca, the ministry of energy has already offered to private companies plots of land to lease at the Vasilikos Energy Centre, in order to build their own facilities,” the announcement said.
At the KETAP facilities in Larnaca, small quantities of fuel remain, the announcement said, which are not pumpable, and will remain there for technical reasons until the end of the year.
It added that KETAP had commissioned an environmental impact assessment study, which would be delivered in September, and submitted to the Larnaca municipality with an application for permission for the demolition of the facilities and site restoration.
In April 2004 the Cyprus Petroleum Refinery was shut down, decommissioned and converted into an oil storage terminal.
The previous government decided to establish a petroleum products import and storage terminal at Vasilikos, as part of a planned energy centre there.
The Vasilikos oil terminal will include facilities for the storage of operational oil reserves, facilities for the storage of strategic oil reserves, and facilities to allow it to operate as an oil trading and transit hub.
