Oil deal to N.Z. firm

Press, 20 May 1981, Page 12

Oil deal to N.Z. firm

PA - -' ' Auckland Oil exports worth 5250,000 will be shipped this year from an Auckland refinery which only. Just- ’missed a million-litre sale to Iran. Dominion' 1; Oil Refining Company, Ltd/ recently won a contract to re-refine and return 150,00 Q litres ayear of ; waste. oil .from American ■'Samoa.-..,' X ■ ; "Negotiations. over a - big. sale :.to. Iran — once one of : the- : world’s biggest oil exporters:—.'fell through apparently only.because of the high freight cost. The Iranian-order would have ranked:among the rhost unusual:contracts .won by:a New Zealand, firin had; it gone ahead. ' : -

But for oil-starved New Zealand to- be able to sell refined products overseas, let alone tempt the Iranians, is surprising enough as it is. The general manager of Dominion .Oil,'? Mr J. D. Phare, said his firm had strong hopes X of gaining further export markets. Dominion? Oil is jointly owned by the M.S.L Corporatioir and BP New Zealand, Ltd. It collects . waste; oil from throughout New Zealand and: re-refines it into high quality lubricating -oils said by users to- be sis good as the original product. ' ? Mr; Phare , said heXgot a surprise severaVmonths ago when an . inquiry cante from Iran seeking a quote for a ? million litres ■ of lubricating

■ bil. Iran has lost much of its own refining capacity through damage in its war ; with neighbouring Iraq. “We sent the specifications and the price and thought it was the last we would hear from them,” Mr Phare said. ; “But they came back, and asked for more details.” ; Dominion Oil quoted.. . a price ex-New . Zealand ■ without" freight, but . .Iran, came back seeking the cost ' shipped in drums rather than by tanker, and with'freight, : .added. . .. “That - is when it fell through. The cost was; out of the world, though it would ” probably have been, economical in a tanker.”' Mr Phare said a deal'has

gone ahead with’ttfe Govern; ment of' American Samoa. Waste oil from power stations is shipped, to Auckland, ( re-refined’ ’ and ; sent <back.-, Shipments ?are made byejy.' six. Weeks and 150,000 litres a year will be re-refined and returned for. further electricity generation. -’ .. •' ? Mr.< Phare, said the Ameri- . can " Samoan contract < plus other Dominion Oil sales to Fiji and Rarotonga were worth $250,000 this year. New sales, were being sought in Guam, New Caledonia/? New, Guinea, and other island ha-,, tions which had problems disposing of. waste oil.. ? “The economics are working out quite well,” he said. “There is tremendous. poten- . tial in it.”. 7 ...