Zulfikarabad Oil Terminal: KMC asks companies to pay their share

Project has been pending since work started in 2010.

KARACHI: The oil marketing companies have yet to take an interest in the construction of the Zulfikarabad Oil Terminal which aims to move thousands of oil tankers to the outskirts to ease traffic congestion, said the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) on Sunday.

Work on the terminal, which is being built at a cost of Rs1.166 billion, has started but the funds remain an issue, said KMC Administrator Muhammad Hussain Syed.

“Oil companies must immediately give their share of money so that we can complete phase I of the project,” said Syed in a meeting held to review the terminal’s progress.

In the first phase, Rs313 million will be spent on civil works, construction of sheds, and provision of water and electricity.

He said that KMC has already set aside Rs150 million as its share of the project.

Once the project is complete, around 2,375 oil tankers can be parked at Zulfikarabad and will not be allowed to park elsewhere in the city. Spread over 150 acres, the terminal will include facilities such as workshops, resting areas and petrol pumps.

Work on the project started in 2010 but faced constant delays due to lack of funds and protests by oil transporters.

Hundreds of tankers remain parked in the Shireen Jinnah Colony and Keamari, causing problems for the residents. A number of petitions have been filed in court for their removal.

The KMC has not given a deadline for completion of the project.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 6^th, 2012.