Local company, Diamond Shorebase Inc has applied to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for an environmental permit to operate a dock facility at Friendship, East Bank Demerara.
The company based at 36 Barima Avenue, Bel Air Park, Georgetown, is aiming to provide both covered berthing and a heavy marine loading depot for platform supply vessels that service the oil and gas industry. The project is a US$25 million undertaking and is expected to be operational 16 months after the commencement of construction.
The docking facility will be constructed on a plot of 5.72 acres of land and will have approximately 10 workers required to operate and maintain the facility during its operation.
According to the project summary, the Friendship Port Development will serve mainly as a loading and offloading depot with services provided to marine vessels operating off the coast of Guyana. Products such as fuel, drilling fluid, and water, may be available to vessels within the covered ship berthing area.
The shore base platform will also offer loading and unloading services for items such as drill pipes, skid units, downhole tools, and service equipment associated with drilling and production rigs. Also available would be lift on/lift off operations using overhead or mobile cranes, roll on/roll off operations using ramps and forklift equipment, drilling fluid batching and supply from an on-base facility via piping system to vessels, storage and supply of bulk products such as barite, bentonite, or cement to vessels via pneumatic conveyance, provision of diesel fuel for vessels, and non-potable water to vessels.
Construction of the new marine dock facility will be performed in accordance with applicable building codes and requirements and through coordination with permitting authorities with a well-documented scope and engineered plans/specifications, the company said.
Touching on the access to the construction site, the company said that will be done via the main entry gate location shown on the south side of the facility. It added that security fencing will be installed as 8-foot-tall chain link fencing with a 2-foot diameter razor wire roll installed on top. The posts will be at 10-foot maximum spacing and will be placed in the ground with concrete. All chain link materials will be hot dipped galvanized and final security protocols on site will be in accordance with local and MARAD (Maritime Administration Department) regulations.
It was stated that much of the site had previously been cleared and is mostly free of any debris. Nonetheless, due to the rural nature of the project. It was noted that the organic topsoil will be scraped off, removed from the site, and relocated in accordance with any environmental and local ordinance requirements.
Environmental impacts associated with the construction and operation are important aspects to be considered, the application states. With that in mind, the company said all necessary measures will be taken to ensure compliance with regulations and that best practices are implemented.
It stated that hydrocarbon releases during operations will be controlled through the development of secondary containment structures that are designed to meet Guyanese EPA standards with the US EPA SPCC serving as a minimum guideline.
“This will mean that 110% of the largest tank volume within any containment area will be contained along with adequate freeboard. The industry standard for this freeboard is to be considered a statistically probable rainfall event lasting 24 hours that would occur once every 25 years. Also ESD shutdown measures would be provided at any offloading areas which could allow operators to shut in any flow in the event of hose failure,” it said.
