Stanlow Terminals, which operates fuel storage and shipping terminals for the giant Stanlow Oil Refinery close to the Mersey, is investing £277m in new and upgraded facilities. Tony McDonough reports
Fuel and liquid storage, shipping terminals and logistics business Stanlow Terminals is investing £277m in its facilities on and around the River Mersey.
Stanlow Terminals is a subsidiary of Essar Oil (trading as EET Fuels) which operates the UK’s second-biggest oil refinery at Stanlow, close to Ellesmere. The refinery produces 16% of all UK road fuels and supplies multiple airports with jet fuel.
In October LBN revealed EET had recorded pre-tax losses of £69m for the 12 months to March 31, 2024. Revenues were also down from £9.26bn to £7.6bn. The company blamed a ‘once-in-75-years’ winter storm and a ‘maintenance event’ for the losses.
However, Stanlow Terminals has also filed its accounts for the same period. They show a 12% rise in revenues to £112m and flat pre-tax profits of £43.5m. Values in the report are expressed in UK dollars. LBN has converted them to sterling at current exchange rates.
Stanlow Terminals provides bulk liquid storage, and terminal services for the refinery. It employs around 30 people. The oil refinery itself employs around 750 people and this number is doubled when contractors are included.
Its assets include shipping terminals on the Manchester Ship Canal, which handle around 500 vessels a year, and the Tranmere Oil Terminal next to the Cammell Laird shipyard in Birkenhead which handles around 150 supertankers each year.
Crude oil is unloaded at Tranmere and is pumped via an underground pipeline the eight miles to the Stanlow refinery where it is turned into multiple petroleum products.
In 2023 Stanlow Terminals announced it was building a new import terminal for green ammonia at Tranmere. Green ammonia is a highly effective liquid carrier of hydrogen, which allows for the safe and cost-efficient transport of hydrogen at scale.
It will enable the import and storage of more than 1m tonnes per year of green ammonia for onward distribution into the UK or conversion back to green hydrogen for supply to the North West’s industrial customers.
Stanlow is to be the nerve centre of the HyNet hydrogen production and carbon capture hub. This will see hydrogen produced by burning natural gas and piping it to factories in the North West. This method of production is known as ‘blue hydrogen’.
In early October the Government pledged £22bn to HyNet, and a similar project in the North East, in a 25-year commitment. However, There remains significant scepticism about the viability of carbon capture and storage.
Stanlow Terminals is also investing to cater for the increased demand for biofuels by creating the UK’s largest storage hub to support the net zero transition. It will offer a capacity of 300,00 cubic metres.
And it is supporting the HyNet project by developing a “robust infrastructure” for storage and transportation of hydrogen via pipelines, road, rail and ship. All these investments add up to around £277m.
Writing in the annual report, chairman Prashant Ruia said: “Stanlow Terminals is moving forward with confidence. Current performance supports our plans for development and growth.”