African Oil Refiners conference
Posted: 10 January 2008
The third annual meeting of the African Oil Refiners (ARA) in Cape Town from March 10 to 12 will be a significant milestone in the industry’s united, continent-wide initiative to improve product quality, address health issues and meet the challenge of the competition from new refineries in India and the Middle East.
The introduction of the Africa-specific standards will improve both product and air quality and help reduce fraud involving the mislabeling and adulteration of refined products.
The ARA has demonstrated a concerted willingness to move forward in terms of improved performance that has taken root as a result of its organisation of regular technical meetings.
Since the 2007 meeting, ARA seminars for laboratory, safety and medical managers have been held and refiners report that the initiative has led to gratifying results that include the adoption of superior processes developed by individual refineries.
But refiners acknowledge that they are constantly faced with the threat of a tsunami of products arriving from new mega-refineries in India and the Middle East where production volumes will equal more than 80 per cent of Sub Saharan Africa’s annual oil consumption.
To help confront this threat, the ARA, representing 41 of the 43 African Refiners, has gained the backing of the World Bank. The bank will co-finance with the ARA a major sub-Saharan study to address health issues as well as economic challenges.
The study will be carried out by independent consultants and will also involve a series of workshops with industry leaders during 2008.
The Cape Town conference of the ARA in March will also be a forum for the refiners to address the need to improve fuel quality, including the scope for Africa to both manufacture and use Biofuels.
The ARA gives a global voice to African refiners and to improves communication and co-operation between members and the international oil market.
The association collaborates with the relevant industry groups, governments, regulatory bodies, international agencies, academic institutions and non-governmental organisations.
African Refiners Week 2008 will take place March 10 - 14 with the Annual General Meeting (members and sponsors-only) taking place March 10 - 12.
Workshops will be organised on March 13 - 14 by CITAC Africa LLP at the Westin Arabella Grand Hotel, Cape Town.
Following the ARA conference, Oil Africa 2008 will also take place March 17th to 19th in Cape Town. Oil Africa 2008 is mainly concerned with Oil Exploration and Production, and will be held at the CTICC.
Posted by Richard Price, Editor, EnergyME.com
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