By Janet Silvera, Freelance Writer 
It was all smiles and applause after Robert Pickersgill, Minister of Transport and Works, cut the ribbon to open the new Fuel Farm at the Sangster International Airport on Thursday. With him, from left, are Charles Downie, Global Operations Manager for Exxon Mobil Aviation, Mayor of Montego Bay Noel Donaldson, Winston Watson, managing director for Petrojam Limited and Michael Chen, general manager, Texaco Caribbean. - Janet Silvera
WESTERN BUREAU:
ELEVEN MONTHS of the combined efforts of Exxon Mobil, Texaco Caribbean and Petrojam/Air BP, plus $360 million of investment have resulted in the construction of Jamaica's newest state-of-the-art fuel storage facility.
"Our association comes at a time when there is an increasing trend towards mergers in the sector, internationally," said Peter O'Callaghan, International Marketing Manager of Air BP. "[And] when the world's airlines are demanding competitive pricing, improved efficiency and value added service."
The facility, built specifically to accommodate the large fleets of aircrafts that utilise the Sangster International Airport, was officially opened by Minister of Transport and Works, Robert Pickersgill on Thursday in Montego Bay.
Lauding the three competitors for partnering in a joint venture, the Minister said the facility would position Sangster as having one of the most modern and efficient fuel systems of any airport in the region.
QUALITY CONTROL
He said the design took into account, safety, and protection of the environment, occupational health, quality control and general operations, based on worldwide-accepted industry standards.
The new facility boasts three vertical above-ground steel tanks of 7,000 barrels or approximately 294,000 gallons, with provision made for construction of additional tanks should there be a demand for greater storage capacity in the future.
Acknowledging that the need for a new fuel farm was recognised some 13 years ago, the Minister said that developments at the Sangster airport had surpassed the current aviation fuel facilities that were built in 1960.
"We found that those original facilities needed to be refurbished and a new location was necessary, as the old fuel location had over time become surrounded by other activities related to the aviation business."
ADEQUATE PREPARATION
Along with the fuel pumps, adequate preparation was also made in equipping the facility with a fire-fighting system, capable of providing enough water for cooling the storage tanks in the event of a fire.
The system is complemented with a 250,000-gallon water tank and two pumps with an output of 500-gallons per minute.
"The fire water system is designed to meet the applicable National Fire Prevention Agency (NFPA) codes and criteria," said the Minister.
The safety features incorporated into the design of the fuel tanks include inlet nozzles with diffusers specially designed to dissipate any static charge that the product could generate while flowing through the pipelines.
All the tanks are equipped with high level alarms to eliminate the risk of overfill.
