Shell sets up 3rd major import facility in Davao

Listed firm Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corporation will be setting up its third largest import facility in Sta Cruz, Davao which will have a rated capacity of 67 million liters and will be due for commercial operations in the next two years.

The Darong import facility in Sta. Cruz is a joint venture between Northern Star Energy Corporation of the Delgado group and the DMCI Construction and Equipment Resources Inc. (DMC CERI) of the Consunji group. Upon the facility’s completion, it will be leased exclusively to Shell as its storage facility.

Additionally, the Sta Cruz Storage Corporation, which is also affiliated with the Delgado group, “will design, construct and operate the facility for Shell with an exclusive-use arrangement for a term contract -- with an option to extend.”

The Darong import terminal will be Shell’s third largest after its Shell Import Facility Tabangao (SHIFT) in Batangas with 263 million liters capacity; and Northern Mindanao Import Facility with 90 million liters of capacity.

Shell said the new Davao facility would be able to underpin its planned expansion of retail network in Mindanao, a buildup from its current portfolio of 240 mobility stations in the island.

“With the Darong import terminal achieving full operational status by the third quarter of 2024, PSPC plans to establish more than 80 new mobility stations in southern Mindanao by 2025,” the oil company noted.

According to Shell Vice President for Corporate Relations Serge Bernal, “southern Mindanao is a strategic growth location for Shell...the Darong import facility will allow us to fulfill our commitment to support economic activities as the Philippines continues to recover from Covid-19.”

He stressed that the facility “strengthens our capacity to continue to deliver quality fuels to our customers, consistent with our organization growth plans.”

The company conveyed the sites of its facilities “are designed to enhance customer experience, offer both fuel and non-fuel products, enable more forms of transportation and lower carbon footprint through innovation.”

Shell added the new facility “will help and promote business continuity and stability in the area, providing resources for mobility during incidents of storms, floods and other natural calamities.”

DMC CERI Chairman Isidro Consunji asserted that “the global pandemic has shown us the vulnerability of our supply chains and the need for more resilient infrastructure...with or without a pandemic, the Philippines needs adequate, continuous and affordable fuel supply to sustain the economy,” emphasizing then that the Darong oil terminal will be an infrastructure-response to that need.

For Northern Star, company executive vice president and COO Juan Miguel Delgado indicated that the import facility project “will help provide southern Mindanao with access to the highest quality fuel products to support economic activities as the region strives to recover from the pandemic.”

Kit Bermudez, vice president for supply and distribution of Shell, stated that “Mindanao is one of the key priority growth areas” for the company. It is also their business commitment to the region as they had witnessed how the area flourished on its economic expansion.