Turkish bitumen cargo flows to resume from Dortyol

The new bitumen export terminal in Dortyol, near Ceyhan, in southeast Turkey is to resume cargo loadings for the first time since the Turkish earthquake.

Trading firm Vitol's 36,771 dwt tanker Asphalt Synergy is scheduled to arrive at the facility, part of the GTS oil terminal, tomorrow, 21 March, to begin loading operations for a 33,000t cargo to Vitol's Antwerp storage terminal in Belgium. There it will help feed rising northwest European demand at the start of the road paving season.

Dortyol export operations began in December with three cargoes totalling 45,000t. These were loaded by Vitol and trading firm Trafigura that were moved to destinations in the Mediterranean and Asia-Pacific.

The terminal's exports are entirely composed of truck flows from Iraqi Kurdistan, mainly the bitumen-producing Lanaz refinery. After taking several weeks to refill Dortyol storage tanks, those truck movements were disrupted by the 6 February Turkish earthquake.

Work to expand the bitumen terminal's capacity by 10,500m³ to 40,500m³ (equivalent to around 40,500t) was also affected by the earthquake. The three new 3,500m³ tanks were to have been operational at the end of March, but will now be up and running at the end of April or in early May.

More Turkish export capacity will soon also make its presence felt. Test processes for the 45,500m³ Torosport Ceyhan bitumen terminal, to be operated under lease by Turkish construction and bitumen supply firm Guven Asfalt, will be completed at the end of March, with the official start of truck receipt and cargo export operations set for mid-April.

Torosport expects Iraqi Kurdistan bitumen to form part of its exports, but is also planning to receive domestic production by truck including from Tupras' 28,000 b/d Batman bitumen-focused refinery further southeast near the border with Iraq, as well as Azeri export flows.

By Keyvan Hedvat