Pictured: Christian des Closières, MD and CEO of TOTAL South Africa, who is also Executive Vice President of Total Southern Africa and the current Chairman of the South African Petroleum Industry Association (SAPIA)

TOTAL South Africa announcedit is investing more than R140 million over the next two years in upgrading its blending plant and expanding the storage capacity of its fuel depot, both located at Durban’s Island View Terminal (IVT) facility.

The company’s decision to commit to this two-prong investment comes shortly after it signed a new 15-year lease with the Transnet National Port Authority. The company has had a presence at IVT since 1956, just two years after it started its operations in South Africa.

Importantly, the supply of products from TOTAL South Africa’s blending plant and fuel storage depot will not be interrupted while the upgrade and expansion takes place during 2013 and 2014. Neither of the facilities will be shut down and lubricant stock will be built up at a separate distribution facility outside of Durban to ensure that there are no product shortages.

Christian des Closières, MD and CEO of TOTAL South Africa, who is also Executive Vice President of Total Southern Africa and the current Chairman of the South African Petroleum Industry Association (SAPIA), says: “We see this as a major vote of confidence in South Africa as well as in other countries in southern Africa as some of the additional lubricants we will be blending will be exported to South African Development Community (SADC) countries, which we see as a growth market for our lubricants.”

“Our roots in South Africa go back to the mid-1950s and we are committed to growing our business in South Africa and southern Africa through sustainably growing our infrastructure and distribution channels in the fuel and lubricants markets.”

The upgrade to the blending facility – which will cost around R50 million – will focus on modernising filling lines,  an on-site laboratory, and improving health and safety features and  quality control measures.

The expansion of the fuel storage depot – which will cost around R90 million – will lead to 26% of all fuel marketed by TOTAL South Africa being stored on the sited compared to the current level of 17%.  As a result of this expansion, there will be better integration into national infrastructure such as the New Multi Product Pipeline (NMPP) and capacity for future growth will be catered for and enabled.  Safety improvements will also be made.

Significantly, the signing of a new lease with TNPA plays a critical role in TOTAL South Africa’s decision to invest heavily in its lubricant blending and fuel storage facilities.