Egypt brings online new crude pipeline at El Hamra oil port

Egypt brought an online new crude oil pipeline at El Hamra oil pipeline port project in New Alamein City and set out other planned improvements to the port as part of the country’s efforts to become a regional energy hub.

El Hamra petroleum port lies around 120 km west of Alexandria, Egypt’s second-largest city, and is run by the Western Desert Operating Petroleum Co (WEPCO).

El Hamra, which links the port with an additional offshore tanker loading facility, will increase the port’s shipping capacity to 1 million barrels of crude per day and will be a key part of the port’s capabilities, the Egyptian Cabinet said on Wednesday.

Oil Minister Tarek El Molla said crude storage at El Hamra had increased, boosting capacity by 250,000 barrels to a total of 1.5 million barrels, to “securely receive quantities of crude oil … from companies operating fields in the Western Desert,” the statement said.

Two more storage tanks will be built at the port to increase its capacity to 2.8 million barrels, El Molla said.