(EnergyAsia, June 13 2013, Thursday) — Switzerland-based energy trader Gunvor Group and Germany’s Oiltanking GmbH have announced they will jointly build a new oil storage terminal on the Indonesian island of Karimun by mid-2015.

Oiltanking Karimun, located more than 60 km west of Asia’s main oil trading hub in Singapore, will have an initial storage capacity of 760,000 cbm to help meet growing demand from oil traders supplying, blending and distributing fuels to customers in the region. The terminal will be supported by four jetties capable of accommodating Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC).

Oiltanking will manage and operate the new company with Gunvor taking an unspecified minority equity stake and committing to rent part of the capacity as part of Asian growth strategy. Neither company disclosed the cost of the proposed project.

Gunvor said the partners chose to invest in Karimun on account of its proximity to Jurong Island, Singapore’s petroleum and petrochemical hub, and also to support ship-to-ship fuel delivery operations in the waters off both countries.

“Karimun offers favorable nautical conditions, such as easy access to VLCC size vessels, and availability of ready-to-build land,” said Gunvor.

“While Singapore’s storage capacity has been growing steadily over the last decade, further growth is hampered by the scarcity of waterfront and lack of land available for new expansions.”