Laffan Refinery’s Diesel Hydrotreater (DHT) project recently celebrated 3mn man-hours without a lost time injury.
This marks yet another significant milestone for the project, underlining its commitment to outstanding safety, health and environment (SHE) performance, it said.
The permanent works construction phase commenced in July 2012 and the project remains on target for start up in April, 2014. When completed, the DHT will produce diesel with less than 10 parts per million of sulphur, which will exceed the “best in class” Euro 5 specification. This will make a major contribution towards Qatar’s drive for world class environmental standards.
The project management team (PMT) together with the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor for the work (Samsung Engineering and Construction) has adopted an integrated approach to safety on the project that involves working closely with the workforce in a collaborative manner to ensure the health and safety of all employees associated with the project.
The excellent safety record of the project is an indication that this co-operative process is working and has provided a solid foundation upon which to continue this type of performance well into the future, according to a statement.
At the safety celebration in which team and individual awards were handed out to the contractor and sub-contractors, Salman Ashkanani, Refinery Ventures chief operating officer said, “This is the third time on the project that we have celebrated a major safety milestone and on the evidence that I have seen within the teams, I look forward to maintaining this excellent standard through to the completion of the work. Safety is the responsibility of everyone and it gives me great pleasure when I see everybody working together with the common aim of going home safely every day. All of you should be proud of this achievement”.
PMT safety lead Lance Pretorius said, “Recently we focused attention on doing the basic things well and being proactive. We are sure this will lead to an incident and injury-free workplace and so far our record supports this. Most important of all is the teamwork that goes in to maintaining our safety philosophy.
“We are constantly looking for improvements and for everyone involved with the work to contribute. When it comes to safety, there will always be work to do but through continued commitment and support we can go a long way to achieving our goal of zero injuries to the end of the project”.
DHT project manager Neil Bonner said, “The safety philosophy on the project is multi-faceted. We take a standards-based approach. The PMT supports and provides oversight to the contractor’s safety teams but we ourselves are supported by Qatargas safety, environment and quality department – we have benefited a great deal from campaigns such as the Qatargas Ten Life Saving Rules”.
The DHT project forms part of Qatar’s National Vision for ensuring efficient energy supplies for the country and meeting the most stringent environmental specifications.
The processed diesel from the DHT Unit will be distributed within Qatar through the existing truck loading gantry facilities, which was also constructed by Laffan Refinery Company and operated by Qatar Fuel (Woqod).
Qatar CPI unchanged in November
The Consumer Price Index that denotes inflation remained unchanged in November at 115.5 compared with the previous month, according to a report by Ministry of Development Planning & Statistics. However, it showed an increase of 2.8% when compared to the CPI of November, 2012. With the exception of the group that comprises rent, fuel and energy, all others declined in terms of prices. The index pertaining to rent, fuel, and energy showed an increase by 0.7%.