PHOENIX POISED FOR REGIONAL GROWTH

This was disclosed by the company’s president, Eug-ene Tiah who spoke at PPGPL’s recent Fractionation Three Expansion Dedication ceremony at Courtyard Marriott Hotel at Invaders Bay.

He told an audience of mainly business people: "The Fractionation 3 Project adds another 24,000 barrels a day to our fractionation capacity, taking it to 70,000 barrels a day.

"This project was driven by an agreement with Atlantic LNG Train 4, to transport, fractionate, store and market liquids up to 12,000 barrels per day from the natural gas stream."

He said it afforded fractionation capacity for the natural gas liquids that are expected from further expansion of the processing facilities to meet the gas processing needs of the Point Lisas Industrial Estate and the Union Industrial Estate.

Fractionation Three is the second consecutive significant project managed completely by Phoenix Park’s committed business development team that handled all commercial aspects of the project.

Tiah said the Phoenix Park team was able to structure a commercially attractive agreement that offered Atlantic LNG Train Four, a value proposition that beat their next best alternative of constructing their own facilities.

According to Tiah, with the agreements in place, Phoenix Park Gas Processors had to source the financing — all (US)$37million of it.

"We were able to source international financing at very attractive rates without the need for company or shareholder guarantees.

"The entire process to secure financing was managed by Phoenix Park employees and is the second consecutive major financing activity that has been successfully implemented."

Safety has always been, and continues to be a number one priority at Phoenix Park.

In disclosing this, Tiah said over 740,000 man-hours were worked on the Fractionation Three Expansion project, without a single recordable incident.

He also pointed out that the company’s safety culture had ensured that PPGPL has been operating for 13 years without a lost time incident and for more than nine years, without an employee recordable incident.

"It comes as no susrprise therefore, that in 2004, for the sixth consecutive year, PPGPL won the Gas Processors Association’s safety award in the international division.

Tiah explained that the Fractionation Three Project was a vital part of Phoenix Park’s business strategy of becoming the natural gas liquids hub of Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean

"This strategy produces enormous advantage in terms of economies of scale and scope and boosts international competitiveness, thereby maximising the value of the country’s natural gas liquids and returning excellent dividends to its shareholders, and substantial tax payments to the treasury," said Tiah.

He explained further that it also positioned Phoenix Park to help spawn a myriad number of downstream industries, based on natural gas liquids.

"The economic multiplier effect of such downstream industries can be tremendous," he added.