Oman extends bid deadline for refinery expansion

Oman is extending the bidding deadline to next month for engineering and construction companies seeking to work on the expansion of a refinery in the port of Sohar.Engineering and building companies have until tomorrow to collect tender packages related to the project and will have until 11 am local time on September 6 to submit bids for the work, the state-run refinery company said in an announcement on its website.Bids were initially to be due August 8.Oman Oil Refineries and Petroleum Industries SAOC aims to expand capacity at the Sohar facility. The company owns one refinery and two chemical plants at Sohar and another fuel processing plant at Mina al Fahal near the capital Muscat.The Omani company plans to expand crude processing capacity at the Sohar refinery to 187,000 barrels a day from 116,000 barrels, according to Chicago Bridge and Iron Co, known as CB&I, which won the contract for engineering and design work on the project.Capacity will be expanded by adding units to make cleaner-burning fuels and making existing facilities run more efficiently, CB&I said in a statement March 2. From / Arabian Business