Hin Leong to expand in China, Singapore

Singaporea’s Hin Leong is looking at expanding the capacity of its 2.3-million cubic meter (cu m) Universal Terminal (UT), Asia’s largest commercial oil storage and terminalling facility, by a third, or around 750,000-800,000 cu m, Evan Lim, Hin Leong executive director, said. The group is also looking to pursue plans to build a larger oil storage facility in the southern Chinese province of Fujian, and is in the midst of obtaining approvals from the authorities, he said. “If Universal Terminal is allowed to expand, we will be able to get customers to lease the incremental capacity. They have seen our performance since we started three years ago and they have been asking for more space,” he said. “The China facility is a big, big project, it’s bigger than UT, but will have a different business model, though it will still be a commercial terminal. We hope to get the necessary approvals this year.” Lim said the group is also looking at building base oil tanks and lube blending plants, as part of its expansion process, with a capacity of 50,000-100,000 cu m, which will enhance Singapore’s position as one of the top three lubricants hub in the world. The capacity will be leased out on commercial basis. Currently, Hin Leong has a 100,000-cu m lubricant-blending operations at its Tuas headquarters. (February 11, 2011)